The glaring white lights flipped on one after another, accompanied by a regimented cadence of footsteps echoing down the icy metallic corridor. A blonde middle-aged woman, clad in a formal suit, had a badge on her chest reading 'Experimental Area Director.'
With a heavy expression, she entered the lift and turned to her subordinate. "Why on earth would subject B1263 escape? I have to explain this to the higher-ups!" she queried.
"Apologies, Director. Our agents are still investigating. Preliminary suspicions suggest that the unit may have been put under low-security level hibernation, which might have left it incompletely dormant..."
"Don't force me to remind you again!" The Director chided fiercely through clenched teeth. "We must ensure that no one in the public sees any of this. Otherwise, all of our careers are finished!"
Just as they stepped out of the elevator, a younger secretary approached them. Handing over a report to the director, she briskly walked alongside her and said, "The Bureau Chief is coming for inspection, and he urged us to prepare ahead of time by boxing everything up."
"And when will he arrive?" the Director asked curtly without turning.
"Now."
"Ahhhhhhh!!!"
A scream echoed from somewhere below. Behind them, the security staff swarmed toward the staircase. The director halted her steps. Within her dark eyes, a pattern reminiscent of a wheel hub gradually became visible.
The spinning wheels slowed, sowing tiny dust particles, the black alien vehicle of S.H.I.E.L.D. parked in front of the base, with Shiller and Nick each getting off from either side.
Following security personnel stepped out of another car and trailed behind them. Nick adjusted his sunglasses and spoke, "This place stores some high-risk experimental articles. I hope they haven't made too much of a mess."
"High-risk experiments? Aren't you releasing them to spar with the superheroes?"
"We absolutely can't allow that," Nick lightly adjusted his shades, gazing down at Shiller as he said, "High-risk means perilous, even for Captain America."
As they briskly passed through the main gate, Nick hurried forward, explaining as he paced along.
"We need to keep the superheroes employed so we can receive operational funding. But we certainly can't let them suffer significant injuries or mental harm. So, their opponents need careful selection."
"Of course, they can't be utterly under-challenging. Neither the military nor Congress is stupid. They can discern the severity of a battle. But the challenge mustn't be too great. Physical injuries aren't much; if their morale gets impacted, however, now that would be problematic."
"All superheroes, including Avenger members, have their advantages and weaknesses. Some creatures, created with a particular focus on their frailties, could potentially pose severe threats if let loose at the right moment. Such creations would also be labeled as failures and then destroyed."
"We categorize successful experiments by different superhero strengths, tagging them accordingly. When the superheroes have some downtime, we introduce these tagged creatures into their field of view in a reasonable manner. This not only provides financial support for S.H.I.E.L.D but also keeps our superheroes alert."
"Failed experiments don't have any grading, but all things which haven't been immediately destroyed pose their own problems. To superheroes, at least, they are a threat. When these objects are packed and stored densely in warehouses, their risk factor increases exponentially."
"So, that's why I require your help to clean up this mess. You understand, if this wasn't an urgent matter, I wouldn't readily tolerate your high-demands."
Just as they entered the lift, Nick heard a fragile slithering sound, punctuated with a 'pop' as the light in the lift extinguished.
Shiller instantly looked up toward the top of the elevator, where a shadow flitted by. A thick grey mist swirled around the lift, preventing immediate free-fall despite the power cut and the failure of the protection system, instead, bringing it to a gradual halt on the fourth basement level.
"Something got out," Nick tentatively stepped out from the elevator, surveyed the pitch-black hallway, and said hopefully, "Let's hope that it isn't one of those 'B series' creatures."
"What's so special about them?" Shiller also moved out from the elevator, inquiring about the matter.
"The 'B series' subjects are unique. Most of them are intangible but can affect humans in a particular way. To put it simply, they are ghosts."
Shiller's eyes widened slightly in surprise, to which Nick addressed in the darkness, "Don't be so dramatic. If humans have souls, why shouldn't there be ghosts?"
"Moreover, Tony did some extensive research on this and found that scientifically speaking, ghosts are a type of wave, as are human souls'd."
"Normally, we create a powerful electromagnetic field to pulverize the failed ghostly experimental objects. But for ones with unique wavelengths, we temporarily trap them, resorting to the formidable solar power to eliminate them."
"So, does it mean there might be an evil spirit on the loose?"
"Depends on who you ask." Nick appeared composed but pulled out a gun from behind anyway, saying, "For superheroes who excel in physical combat only, and the faint-hearted, these things are a true challenge. But for you… do you fear ghosts?"
Without an answer, Shiller started walking away down the hallway, saying, "The only ghost I am afraid of in this world is the spirit of poverty."
"You could have directly said that you fear me."
Nick followed leisurely behind Shiller down the hallway. As they turned a corner, Shiller noticed the unconscious bodies of the woman director and the security staff.
Upon checking their vital signs, finding they were alive, Shiller turned to Nick, asking, "Can ghosts harm humans?"
"It depends on the similarity in their brainwave frequencies," briefly explaining the matter, Nick added, "In simpler terms, the stronger the fear, the more similar the brainwaves become to the spectres, making it easier for these ghosts to control one's brainwave."
"But if you are totally disbelieving and fearless, unless the ghost is strong enough to directly collapse the ceiling and crush someone to death, it can't kill people."
Nick looked down at his subordinate and said, "The people who work here all know the ins and outs of these monsters. They're just test subjects. If they're not particularly scared, they're less susceptible to control, so they just fainted."
Shiller understood and stood back up, "But ghosts can control people and kill them, right?"
Nick nodded, "That's why you should never be friends with those who are timid yet act recklessly, and if you do not believe, stay unswerving. Then you'll be immune to all ghosts."
Suddenly, Shiller turned to look at the end of the dark corridor where a small shadow appeared, looking like a little boy holding something.
Nick turned around and asked, "What's that? I'm not scared of this stuff, so I can't see clearly."
"It's a little boy." Shiller frowned, "You even caught such a small child? This is morally reprehensible."
"Please, they're ghosts. Without S.H.I.E.L.D. capturing them and charging them with energy, they would have already dissipated."
"How do you confine them?"
"Magic energy, or specific radio waves."
Shiller instantly transformed into a ball of gray mist. The little boy ghost started running at the sight of it, but Shiller caught him in the end.
Nick took off his sunglasses and said, "Ghosts and souls are completely different. Although most ghosts are produced when souls remain for certain reasons, you can understand them as being spoiled the moment they become ghosts, which is why Hell doesn't want them."
"Under usual circumstances, ghosts will dissipate when they run out of energy, then go to the Realm of Death. But we bring them back, overcharge them, and some of them undergo further mutations, becoming more powerful, with some even able to influence the real world."
Shiller looked at the ghost trapped between the energy shields created by the gray mist. It was a little boy with bleeding eyes, holding a man's head, with a semi-transparent body. It wasn't particularly bloody, but it was a bit eerie.
Nick continued, "Some humans, at the moment of death, have abnormal brainwaves, resulting in their souls transforming into ghosts. There are many factors that can cause abnormal brainwaves, such as extreme emotions, the Earth's magnetic field, influence from surrounding brainwaves, etc. Or at least, that's how Tony explained it."
"So how am I supposed to take these things across the universe?" Shiller asked a practical question, "Do I really have to tie them up individually and lead them through the portal?"
"Of course not, follow me. We have special containment jars underground." Nick led the way towards the basement, with Shiller and the captured child ghost trailing behind.
Soon they arrived at the bottom. In this massive underground space called the Experimental Subject Storage Warehouse, Shiller saw tens of thousands of cylindrical jars storing various types of monsters. Clearly, despite Nick's primary motive being to swindle funds, he took his posturing seriously.
"You can use that mystical mist of yours to store all the entities here, as long as you don't alter their properties or structures. Then, you go through the portal and dump all the entities into that universe. It should be easy."
"Are you sure the zombies will eat this stuff?" Shiller looked up at the monsters floating in the jars on the tall shelves.
"If not, they can eat the zombies." Nick turned around and walked backwards, looking at Shiller, "We're only introducing another group of monsters into a world already filled with them. Neither side deserves sympathy."
"No, there's at least one that does." Shiller looked at Nick.
Nick paused and, seeing Shiller's expression, scratched his head, "Is it that mysterious prophetic ability of yours again?"
"Haven't you seen the specific situations of those two worlds?"
"Only a little, but it's all too much like a midnight channel gore-fest. To be honest, if you saw their eating habits, you wouldn't have any interest in them."
"So you don't want to save anyone from there?"
"What's the point of saving them?" Nick shook his head, "it's unfortunate to have been infected by the zombie virus, but there are so many tragedies happening in the Multiverse that we can't save everyone."
"Although I understand you want to create more possibilities for other universes, we should first save those that can be saved easily. Once we gather more power, we can deal with the difficult ones. It could save us some energy."
"So what about your little lamb?"
"I'm pretty sure the Spider Man of this universe has also become a zombie." Nick shook his head and sighed, "I couldn't bear to watch anymore after seeing him eat his own aunt and girlfriend. It's not his fault, but even if I rescued him and restored his sanity, he would completely break down because of this."
"Rather than letting him face the truth and feel guilt and pain, it would be better to let him continue in his madness." Nick pursed his lips, "There's no responsibility Spider Man must bear, but he always thinks that way."
"It's rare for you to say something humane." Shiller shook his head, "But I've recently come to understand something. Spider Man is stronger than you think. Facing the dark truth won't defeat them, it will only make them stronger."
"Are you going to save him?"
"He'll save himself, and the world, once again."