Log:This Spooky Old House: Exploration Edition, Part 7

This Spooky Old House 2020/08/10 Blink Blockbuster Bran Felix Kid tengu Phantom

7

In our last episode, we began in media res in the combat with Damon Harrington's spectre and his animated corpse. During the fight, the corpse turned out to be very tough as Kid Tengu, Blink, and Summer all discover. KT punts it and Summer bakes it a bit, but, in a superb use of her powers Blink finally pins the corpse under a marble horse statue that for some reason is part of that part of the 3rd floor's decor. The body, with sacrificial athame in hand, is trapped.

Meanwhile, Bran and Phantom deal with the spectre. Quite handily as it turns out. Their combines mental powers force the spectre to abandon it's independent existence and re-enter his corpse. Which, unbeknownst to our young heroes, breaks a deal Damon Harrington had made with the Gentleman, a let's call him demon lord, who had gifted Harrington powers. Apparently Harrington was seeking apotheosis, to become a god, and was collecting people's spirits as part of it. With Damon in default the Gentleman showed up to claim all the souls. Forturnately for the souls, Felix and Chalmers/Night Hound found a clause in the contract with the Gentleman which made all of Harrington's property, real and spiritual, the property of anyone who defeated him who was not working for the Gentleman.

The Gentleman seemed to take this defeat gracefully and left with only Harrington's soul after burning Harrrington's body to ash. He did remark in a final word that 'he's be keeping an eye on you brave youths.'

Curtain rises on: This Spooky Old House: We Own This Now Edition!

Phantom stares back at all the spirits that were released and are staring at them. He looks to the others and shrugs. "Umm."

KT has no idea what is going on. Human Spiritual Practices are strange and vary greatly. He didn't even know they could commune with the dead and make such barters. Then again, his father wasn't really the Spiritual type. More the blood-soaked conqueror type.

KT maintains his form- the amalgamation of all the couples they witnessed here today, but otherwise he's quiet until Phantom seems about as unsure about things as he is.

"So... they're like... free now, right?" KT asks. "The deal's done?"

To recap what Phantom is seeing:

All of the jars in the room shatter. And at the sound of the crystalline cracks, spirits rise from each of the hundred plus jars: young, old, male, female, every race and creed, and all dressed in the clothes of previous eras back into the 1980's.

They all look at your group.

Bran lets out a long whistle. "Okay...so...what now?"

The skeleton holding Chalmers and the Night Hound takes a step back and collapses to the ground in clatter. Standing next to it, disengaging their held hands, are the ghost of Chalmers Hornbeck, now looking in neat, dapper three piece suit, eyeglasses uncracked, and the Night Hound, whom only Phantom's seen before. He a tall man dressed in a very dark, almost black, charcoal grey suit, fedora, and overcoat. His face is covered b the shadows cast by the fedora and a dark grey kerchief over his moth and nose.

"I guess we figure out how to get them to move on," Phantom suggests. He looks quickly as the skeleton clatters, glad to see they're okay. "So, Chalmers. You seem to know about some of this stuff. What do you guys suggest?"

Felix looks around and then at the others. "Um, I think they're waiting for something? From us?"

KT waves awkwardly at the ectoplasmic gathering and the newly split Chalmers & Night Hound.

"ooh. Good. SO..." He begins. "How?" He inquires to Phantom, still just as uncertain as before. He doesn't take much action for fear of setting off something else he doesn't quite grasp.

"What do Ghosts- or the ... Living Impaired even want?" KT asks Blink in a quiet whisper.

"Well, I imagine they are waiting for a pscyhopomp," murmurs Chalmers as he check the watch at this waist. "What time is it?" he murmurs softly to himself. "What year for that matter?" is even softer.

The Night Hound looks over at Chalmers and shakes his head. "Academics, Chri..." He cuts short his blasphemy then turns his darkened gaze to the teens present. "A pscyhopomp is a spirit or being meant to guide the departed to the Afterlife. If you believe in such things." He gestures at the assembled silent masses. "So, the waiting. They're like prisoners who don't really know they're free yet."

Phantom takes a breath and starts walking towards the spirits. "You all should be free now. You can go on to your loved ones," he says to them.

"Or Party! Ooh! Like a Potluck until this Psychopomper shows up!" KT suggests. "Potlucks are humanity's finest invention." He adds certainly.

The spirits seem to respond to Phantom's words. Smiles break out among them along with a few frowns or expressions of fear. But, for the overwhelmingly most part, they seem relieved and happy. Almost as a group, they turn to look at high corner of the room.

A white light suddenly blazes from that intersection of two walls and the roof, one very hard to look at for any length of time. The spirits rise and start to fall into/walk into the light. In just a few seconds, the ghosts are all gone and the atmosphere in the room is lighter.

Well, mostly. There are a few spirits still around. Chalmers and the Night Hound, for example, both turned deliberately away from the light for some reason. And there are others: a small girl dressed in mid 1800's clothing, a young man dressed in the torn, tattered and bloody remains of a US Army uniform from the mid 20th century, an older woman dressed in turn of the 20th century formal wear who's neck is cut ear to ear, and even odder, a Native American man, faded and insubstantial even for a ghost, dressed like something out a recreation from Colonial Bay's Founder's Day festivities who rests hands on the back of a bear and has an owl on his shoulder.

Felix is wide eyed at all that is occurring. Or so it seems as he's just standing stock still as all of this occurs. Hard to see his face under the mask and goggles after all.

Phantom looks around at the remaining spirits once everyone else's vision has returned to let him see. He's surprised to see some left, and to notice Chalmers and Night Hound are still here. "Why...uh...why didn't you go? And why didn't they?"

Bran furrows his brow and watches as most of the spirits leave...but not all. He rubs his chin as he thinks about it.

KT is extra interested now and all the questions bouncing in his head can be distilled down to the few posed already. He looks expectantly at the others and then back to the ghosts.

"I'm waiting for someone, kid," states the Night Hound as he turns back to the rest of the room. "He's not ready to leave yet, so I stay until he goes."

"I'm trapped here by my own design. The tattoo on my back saved my soul from Harrington's control, but it binds me to this world for 99 years. I still have years to go," murmurs Chalmers. "Do you mind if I, hmm, hang out here? I can make myself useful."

The little girl just grins and steps through a wall, disappearing from sight.

The soldier looks at you all sadly then over to the Native American then with a silent sigh, fades from sight.

A whisper of a voice comes from then older woman as she fades from view as well, "Not until he's dead as well!"

The Native American man's gaze travels slowly over all of you as he reaches up and caresses a pouch around his neck. Then, without word, he and his animal companions fade from sight as well.

"Uh. Uh oh. Um," Phantom is a bit alarmed as they all disperse. "Sure, Chalmers. You're all welcome to stay. But I imagine they want to go once their stuff is resolved. If we can find them..."

Now the air is starting to warm in the room, not quickly, but it no longer feels suffused with the icy cold of death, merely quite chilly.

"Well, he told me, the Indian, that he'll be watching. Or maybe is was the owl," murmurs Felix nervously. "I take it no one else heard him?"

"What do we do with the Honored Dead?" KT asks Phantom quietly. He's clearly unsure how a ghost could be useful or if it would even be right to utilize someone who's passed on in any capacity. He's certainly proven his usefulness in Haunted House situations. KT just isn't excited for any more of those after this nightmare.

He listens to the ghosts that speak and sort of understands their sentiments so he nods to them.

KT shrugs at the man. "Fine by me too." He says with a smile after Phantom and the others give their OK.

He takes a deep breath and stands less defensively as the other ghosts vacate their sight. He stares at the wall for a moment, wondering where that little girl got off too before turning to Felix and shaking his head.

"Watching what? Us? Why?" He asks, sounding at least a little concerned.

Phantom shakes his head to Felix. "I didn't hear him. And I got no idea who the old lady wants dead."

Bran shakes his head, 'I didn't hear him, either"

"I don't know! He's did say! And I wasn't about to ask," says Felix in response to KT's question.

Phantom sighs and rubs his head. "This isn't a soul trap anymore, right?" he asks of Chalmers and Night Hound.

Night Hound and Chalmers share a look then Chalmers states, "I'd guess Felix heard the, um, shaman since Felix is a magickally gifted. Unlike the rest of you."

The Night Hound nods to Phantom. "No, it's a not soul trap any longer. It doesn't, hmm, tug any longer at me. But, it's a thin spot now between this world and the dead I think, It feels...comfortable now." He shrugs. "But that's just my opinion. Well, I have to get back to my patrol."

The Night Hound slightly tips the edge of his fedora. "Certain I see ya'll again. Stay healthy!"

I can't find an online character with that name.

"Aww Felix- you're the whole package." KT says with a grin. "Brains. Brains & even creepy shaman whisperings. Lucky!"

"Yeah, great," mutters Felix.

Phantom sighs at a thought, then sits down on a clean space of ground and crosses his legs to get comfy. "Bran...would you like to be added into the group brain link?"

Bran looks over to Phantom and thinks about it a moment. "I...am not sure that's a good idea. One of my abilities is...to lash out at anyone making contact with my mind. I bet it would happen over that link."

Bran says, "But...thanks for offering."

Phantom winces at the thought and nods to Bran, smiling. "No probs, bro. And...don't be alarmed." He turns his head to look straight ahead and closes his eyes. A few moments later of concentration, and Phantom's head and shoulders droop down and go a bit slack.

From the astral perspective, the house no longer feels, well, evil and possessive. Instead, it feels and looks like an incredibly well preserved old house. Underneath the ice, which is not visible here, this room is an Arabian Nights fantasy of a seraglio down to the ornate fountain in the center of the 'swimming' pool around it.

You cannot see any of the ghosts right now...no, there is the owl perched on the headboard of the immense bed set in an alcove in the sooth of the room. Another horse statue like the one Blink dropped on Harringtons; corpse rests near the bed.

Blockbuster comes floating into the room, carrying mugs of root beer floats. She looks around slowly and inquires, "Weren't there more of you before I left?"

Felix steps over to check on Phantom then looks around the room. "Um, so, I guess we own this place somehow now?" He seems uncertain in his tone and looks to the others and Chalmers.

Bran chuckles at that. "Someone owns the building. Who is it?"

Phantom's astral form floats up above his body and spots the owl. He waves to it. This must be how it meant they were going to be watched. He starts to drift in the direction the little girl ran off to.

Phantom finds himself drifting in the direction of the hall you all entered this room from. Once there, there is no sign of the little girl, but you do hear the pitter pat of shoes from the staircase leading down.

Phantom pursues the sound, trying not to be too creeped out. "Hey, little girl. I'm here to help you find your way home. Come back," he says in big brotherly tones.

"May I see the contracts, um, Felix, right?"

Felix almost eagerly thrusts them at Chalmers and lets go, forgetting that Chalmer's is a ghost.

Which, apparently, is not a problem for Chalmer's as he grabs the falling paperwork with ease. "Oh my, well, that's grand then," Chalmers says with a bright smile.

A thin child's voice calls up the stairs, "I /am/ home, silly! Let's play hide and seek! You're it!"

Phantom is a little uneasy about that. But maybe the girl lived here way back in the day. "But what about your family? Hey! We can play that later!" he calls out, trying to fly faster to catch the girl before she manages to hide.

Shrugging, Blockbuster offers KT and Blink each a root beer float. The rest of the drinks get set down on the floor, save the one that she keeps for herself. Blockbuster takes a long sip of her chilled drink and looks around.

KT watches all this activity and reaches out for the offered root beer float.

He grins at BB.

"Thanks. Your knack for confections is truly your superpower." He says appreciatively before taking a drink and sighing with bliss.

Under the layer of ice in this room, this room seems very well preserved. It's like a Hollywood/Bollywood version of what a Arabian/Turkish seraglio would look like. The place where the Sultan's wives and concubines would be kept. It's just barely tasteful and really over the top.

 Phantom says, "The little girl is playing hide and seek. And there's an owl on the astral plane watching you all."

 Kid Tengu says, ""What do we get when we find her? Does she go home?""

"Don't be, like, ridiculous, KT. My superpower is my impeccable sense of style," replies Blockbuster. She casts a sidelong glance around the room again, making a face at the raw tackiness of its appearance.

Felix watches Chalmers for a moment then goes and gets two root beer floats. He detours slightly to hold one out to Bran.

 Phantom says, "She says she -is- home. I may be a while. BB, where did you get rootbeer floats??"

 Blockbuster says, "Why don't you ask the owl? You said it's been keeping an eye on me the whole time."

Bran looks at hte root beer float. "Uh...where'd that come from?" He doesn't immediately take it.

 Phantom says, "Not you in particular. It's watching us."

"Are these ghostly root beer floats, Blockbuster? I think Bran's afraid he'll catch ghostiness from them," calls out Felix. "I don't think it catches, but..." He takes a sip of his to check.

 Blockbuster, not at all convinced, "Mmmmhmmmm."

 Kid Tengu says, ""Hide & Seek and Owl Watchers are both creepy... in this particular situation.""

Kid Tengu seems not to understand. He sips his root beer float again without a concern in the world- well besides this /still/ very haunted house.

Blockbuster looks over at Felix and Bran, slurping her own root beer float. With a shrug, she just smiles around her straw and shoots a thumbs up to them both.

To make a long story short, the little girl is apparently really good at hide and seek. Phantom finds no 'physical' trace of her.

Phantom frowns to himself, going carefully from room to room, closet to closet. He can't believe he can't find her. "Come on, I give up!"

Felix sighs softly at Blockbuster's thumbs up. He whispers quietly to Bran. "No telling from where it comes, Bran. When she's like this," he shrugs. "I put it down to being her being a Ca...being Blockbuster."

Phantom's body hasn't moved from its semi-slumped position while he goes play an astral game of hide and seek.

There is not response from the little girl. Not a giggle. She's not going to give herself away it seems.

KT shifts into Blockbuster and looks at herself considering soemthing for a moment. "I suppose if beast-mode fashionista is a superpower, my whole family are 'complete packages' then." She says in agreement giving Blink a wink too befre flopping down somewhere comfortable to enjoy her prize.

No where is really comfortable in this room with the thin layer of ice. But there were comfortable looking sofas and charis in the outer hallway. And there's the California king bed down in the souther alcove of this room.

Phantom searches a bit more extensively before starting to drift back towards his body on the third floor.

Blockbuster sits down on the floor, using Phantom's torso as a back pillow. She slurps on her root beer float some more, looking over at Felix and Bran for a few moments. Her attention, however, is drawn toward the duplicate her in the room now. Giggling brightly, she points at KT and cheerily intones, "Lookin' good!"

Phantom sees the Night Hound exit the house via the front door. Around the door is a large pile of skeletal remains, non animate any longer.

Phantom's body slumps down a bit further from the weight against it, but stays up.

KT grumbles at the awful ice covering the seraglio-like decor.

He pats at a place and tries it. No luck.

"OK- I'm done in here. This room is awful. I call not this room. We should... just lock this room off forever.

Phantom slows as he notices Night Hound leaving. He hesitates, then flies after him, slowing as he passes all the skeletons. "Hey, Night Hound! Thanks for the help. Is there anything we can do to help you?"

Bran nods to Felix and silently takes the root beer float. He doesn't' drink from it just yet, though. He's still clearly feeling cautious.

 Phantom says, "Whoa, piles of skeletons outside the front door. Glad we barred it."

Chalmers looks over the two contracts, making 'Hmm' noises from time to time. He spends more time on the one not between Harrington and the Gentleman.

"No, not forever, or even soon," murmurs Chalmers. "Apparently there's a hidden safe in here somewhere."

The Night Hound shakes his head. "I'll let you know if there is, kid." He glances out at the setting sun.

Wow, time passed quickly in there it seems. Quicker than it seemed.

From an astral viewpoint, the darkness around the house and grounds is gone. It now reflects CB weather and lighting once again.

The Night Hound adds, "If you need me for anything. Hmm, most nights I'm somewhere in the Old Town Cemetery."

 Kid Tengu says, "I've slept on piles of bones before. Better than ice. I'm going to check out... that sofa out of the room."

Not-Blockbuster (KT) moesys out to the first non-frozen & soft furniture item she can find outside of the room. There she plops down on a sofa after knocking some of the debris from BB's blasting off of it & patting some dust away.

There she settles in and sighs, shifting into something a little simpler- namely his usual blacksuited and tengu masked self.

Felix looks at the slumped over Phantom. "Shall we move him so his butt doesn't freeze to the floor? Or get too damp?"

Phantom nods to Night Hound. "Sure. If you need me to pass along a message to the one you're waiting for, let me know."

"It's fine," replies Blockbuster, "I can always light a fire under his butt!"

KT can be heard snickering from the other room.

The Night Hound tips his fedora to Phantom and continues on his way, walking as if he's living man. Well, as if he's a living man who can walk through things as he just ghosts through the front gate.

Phantom waves to Night Hound a last time as he departs mysteriously, then tries to return to where his body is.

Felix snickers as well, but does try to prop Phantom up more. Whether for his comfort or to provide Blockbuster more support is hard to say.

As he does this, "Cool. A hidden safe. And does it contain all the riches of the ages?" asks Felix of Chalmers.

"Hey! Felix! That's my body pillow," protests Blockbuster. She kicks up off of the ground, floating on a pillar of light as she frowns at her friend.

"Probably not, no. But it's mentioned in his, hmm, construction contract with the Verminax," Chalmers says then looks up from the contract at Blcokbuster's comment.

"I know, Busty. I'm just trying to make both of you more comfy. Give him a try now," says Felix in a teasing tone.

Phantom finally finds his way back to his body and starts to return to it. A few moments later, Phantom's eyes blink open slowly, pools or white light. "No luck finding her or anyone else. But the evil vibe of this place is gone on the astral plane."

"Don't move, Phantom! We need to find you if you're more comfortable to rest on now!" says Felix in a humor filled tone.

Blockbuster frowns a little more at Felix while Phantom wakes up in his arms. The silver-haired heroine slurps noisily on her root beer float while floating in the air.

"It's no use, Felix. No way to tell now."

Phantom blinks and looks about. "Umm. Felix? What...what're you doing?"

"I guess not. Next time," Felix concedes with a sigh. He gets up and looks around. "So, good to know about the non-evilness. Chalmers says there's a hidden safe in here somewhere. By here I guess he means this room?"

Felix loftily ignores Phantom's question. Or maybe he just didn't hear it.

Bran nods. "I'm glad to hear we purged the evil, at least. So...what's this about a safe?"

"I don't remember being so..." Chalmers trails off then says in a stronger voice, "There is a hidden safe in this room. It's specifically mentioned in Harrington's contract with the Verminax. It's..."

The ghost breaks off. "You all have no idea who the Verminax are, do you?"

"Well, like, isn't Verminax that pest control company?" inquires Blockbuster.

Phantom climbs to his feet, brushing off his clothes. "Brrrr. I can't feel my legs," he mutters. "Uhh, should we?"

"We should totally call Verminax to clean out the bugs in here," agrees Blockbuster, nodding sagely as she slurps on her root beer float.

"Should we, what?" inquires Felix

Chalmers takes off his glasses and then removes the cloth from his breast pocket. As he polishes the glasses, he says, "The Verminax are an extradimensional race. They construct sanctums for mages in our dimension for a, hmm, pre-agreed payment. This payment was set, hmm, eons ago. They leave a contract stating what work was done and if any additional work is owed. The mean to contact them is in the safe."

The ghostly nup looks at you all as he replaces his glasses. "Or do you all want to repair and remodel this house yourselves?"

"I'd prefer to have any such work performed by... just about anyone else. Even if I am handy." KT says as he appears back in the cold room, apparently drawn by the chatter. He grows a number of hands to facilitate his point.

Phantom blinks a few times at that, then looks around. "Umm. Sure. If it's free?"

"The Verminax have already been paid, yes, Phantom. They'd not have done any of the work here is not." Chalmers gestures with the contract. "As is, this house is like the TARDIS: bigger on the inside than the outside. We're on the third floor of a two story plus basement house. This floor is larger than the rest of the house combined...I think. The basement and first floor are limited by the," he glances at the contract, " 'spatial limitations of this dimension'. The second floor while fitting into the house is larger than the first floor. And this floor is even larger. Somehow the windows here, well not in this room, look out at the second floor level. Also, the attic, well, isn't. It's listed as 'dimensionally inaccessible' Luckily, it appears the house and carriage house repair themselves."

KT whistles at that. "Sounds like just the place for #CODEDARK." He says with a grin as he lets hands fall back into the blackness of his body while simultaneously jamming his standard pair of arms into specially grown pockets. He's finished his root beer float and so clearly left its container behind.

Bran looks dubious about this....Verminax. But he remains quiet and just...listens, taking things in for the time being. It's sort of his natural state at this point.

"But, to summon the Verminax, we need whatever is in the hidden safe," Chalmers says again gesturing with the contract. If one looks closely, there's a slight gap between his grasp and the contract. "Can any of you find it?"

Phantom rubs the back of his head, not sure if this is normal for this dimension or not. "Well, I guess we should start searching for that safe. Maybe behind some suspicious paintings or hidden floorboards? Under the...the creepy bed?"

"What are we looking for?" KT asks. "If I can feel for it... maybe I can find it."

With Phantom's suggestion he grows a few extra appendages- tentacles with trillions of microscopic whiskers along one side. "Where should we start, Phantom?"

"A hidden safe? It'll probably be a strong metal box with a keypad or old fashioned locker dial?" Phantom suggests. "It could be hidden in the walls or floor. Behind furniture or a book case?" He looks towards the bed. "I'd think he'd want to keep it close. So I'm guessing somewhere under the bed or by it."

Felix seems to agree with PHantom's assessment if his nodding means anything.

"There's a mention of 'shave and a haircut' in reference to the safe as well. It's literally just a line after the mention of the safe. What is mean?" Chalmers shrugs.

"Alright- sounds as good a place as any." KT says before heading that way and extending his tentacles ahead of him to start feeling for something out of the ordinary.

Well more out of the ordinary than the house already is anyway.

Phantom pulls a face at that description. "Is the safe a person...?"

"OH, thanks. Now a nice new creepy thought to fill my mind's eye. Remind me to prank you later, Phantom," grumbles Felix.

"Yeah, no," Phantom chuckles to Felix as he walks over to the bed slowly. He glances up to where he saw the astral owl.

Underneath the bed, on the side a slightly brown stained dent is in, as if say Harrington's body lay there for decades, Kid Tengu finds an old fashioned shaving mug with an attached straight razor hanging from it.

To those with mystical sense the mug and razor glow with magick.

And to those who see into the astral, an owl blinks at them then looks at the mug/razor then starts to preen its feathers.

"Ummm... weird." KT says as he finds and avoids the stained dent. He isn't talking about the dent, he's talking about what he is lifting- soon enough revealed to be the old shaving mug & razor combo.

"Do... Ghosts shave?" He inquires, trying to picture it.

"OK, those are magicked," says Felix as Kid Tengu takes out the mug with brush inside and the attached razor.

Phantom cringes. "I'm glad there's no corpse left to shave..."

"Oh no! Did I catch it?" KT asks, switching the mugs from hand to hand to hand to hand.

"Well, if I were asleep rather than dead, I'd imagine I'd need a good seeing to whiskerswise," says Chalmers with a slight smile. "I'm glad I'm cleanshaven. Never could abide beards."

Felix sighs. "They are magickal, I mean, KT. Like my stuff. Well, /not/ like my stuff as I know what they do."

"It's a shame there are no, like, magical delivery owls like in Harry Potter," laments Blockbuster.

"Oh!" Kt says as if he understood any of this magick business. "So... its... safe? I mean I can already do the Frog Prince thing." He explains, before turning into a anthropromorphic frog dressed in the finest, royal fineries.

"I always wanted one of those! But then I realized, well, it wouldn't survive long around..." Felix trails off.

Felix laughs at KT's change. "Yes, you're safe in that way, KT."

Blockbuster claps her hands.

"Michigan J. Frog! I love those old flatvid cartoons!"

"Alright, so...those are magic. And they're related to the safe? How do we use them?" Phantom asks, unfamiliar with the shave and a hair cut, two bits song.

Chalmers walks on over to look at the mug. Apparently he doesn't go in for any of this ethereal drifting stuff of other ghosts. He is completely sielnt as he moves though. Adfter a moment, he says, "I think, but I'm not certain, that it's a key. Try, hmm, singing the song."

Delighted, Blockbuster promptly starts singing.

o/~ Hello, my honey!

o/~ Hello, my darling!

o/~ Hello, my ragtime gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal!

"A key?" KT says with surprise. "Magick is so weird." He literally bristles with confusion.

Bran sighs. "Seriously?"

Phantom tenses as Blockbuster sings, expecting something to happen.

Blockbuster throws her arm across KT's frog-shoulders while she holds that high note, singing into the razor in KT's hand like it's a microphone.

Sadly, nothing does happen. Although as Blockbuster continues to hold the note, Chalmers claps then says, "I meant 'Shave and a haircut' but," he smiles brightly, "I did love Warner Brothers cartoons as a kid."

KT can't help but be swept off his feet by Blockbuster's bouyant enthusiasm and electrifying high-note.

He's just about to join in when Chalmer's pipes up.

He still doesn't get it- though being an alien and a shapeshifter, shaving isn't something illuminated by personal experience.

Felix croaks out, "Shave and a haircut," in a very uneven tenor singing voice. It's doubtful he's in choir.

As Felix 'sings', Blockbuster can feel the straight razor vibrate in her hand.

"There's a shave and a haircut song?" Phantom asks cluelessly as Felix sings.

Blockbuster shuts up in a hurry when the razor in KT's hand vibrates. "Umm... KT... Are you doing that to the razor?"

"I thought you were doing that." KT responds.

"I can't do that," replies Blockbuster.

"I can't do that either." KT says. "At least... I've never tried to do that." He sounds a bit more worried and his eyes lock on to the razor in their hands.

His blacksuited body tightens and hardens all over as he expects the worst.

"Yeah," says Felix. 'Shave and a haircut, two bits!' he 'sings' again. And once again, the razor vibrates to the notes of the first four words.

"Maybe we need to do that once we find the safe," Phantom suggests. He starts to sense around again. He can't really look where the others aren't. So he focuses on his clairvoyant abilities, trying to get a sense of the room and perhaps where the safe is.

"I wish I had more experience with things like music and your flatvids." KT laments, having a limited upbringing with a couple of very specific focuses- few of them STEM and no one is arguing that acting in the heart of an enemy stronghold requires a certain artistry but its doubtful that's what is required today.

He takes a deep breath and sings the words too.

"Yeah," says KT 'Shave and a haircut, two bits!'

"Am I doing it right? 'Yeah. Shave and a haircut, two bits!'These are the words, yes?"

As Kid Tengu sings it the second time, he feels the overwhelming compulsion to tap the notes out on the shaving mug with the straight razor.

As he does, the mug rings like a leaden bell...and is answered by two peals (two bits) from under the frozen pool. With a crack, the fountain starts to rise as the water in the pool sluices away somewhere. The frozen surface collapses with a crash as the water underneath recedes. As the fountain rises, a square metal block about the size of a small walk in safe rises out of the floor lifting the fountain.m

Kid Tengu looks at the others with shock written all over his carved tengu face.