#{i'm sorry!}

He didn’t hunt this community often. It was too small to serve as a steady supply without eventually collapsing, but it produced some of the best meat. Small communities usually did.

Vlad knew this was the time of year when most of the town’s residents traveled down to the larger city at the base of the mountain to sell their goods and stock up on supplies. It was the perfect time to visit. He flew invisibly above the treetops, allowing himself to enjoy the view as he spotted people making their way down the mountain, some in groups, some in pairs, a few alone, but everyone carrying something. He studied them carefully, searching for someone that matched what he was craving.

There are many factors to consider when selecting quality meat, and unsurprisingly, one of the most important is how the animal lived. The flavor and nutritional value of the meat depends on a long list of variables, everything from the animal's diet to the amount of exercise it gets play a crucial role. Vlad has spent a long time experimenting to know the factors that make his meat best. He had to personally try a lot of things since there were no records to get guidance from.

He still remembers his first taste of human meat. 

His ascendance into the superior being he is now was a long and difficult process, Daniel should be thankful he got such an easy ascendance. The first explosion of ectoplasm in Vlad’s face had been debilitating, months of pain and ineffectual nurses who looked at him with empty pity. It wasn’t until he decided to continue his treatment at home that things began to improve. There he was able to access the ectoplasm his body needed, samples from his early experiments with his dear Maddeline and that buffoon of a partner. That’s when he realized that what his body had been missing all along was the very thing the hospital had been trying to get out of his system. 

The nurse had been infuriating, constantly trying to get between him and his advancements on the new, improved portal. She insisted he needed rest and that his mental state was deteriorating, speaking to him like he was a senile fool incapable of knowing what was best for himself. Truly, that lady was a pathetic creature. 

His condition wasn’t deteriorating, he was just ascending into his real self. As his portal came to fruition and his transformation completed, he understood the vast difference between himself and that insignificant woman. It only became more apparent when he began interacting with other humans again. Small gatherings, arranged by the nurse to “help him feel less isolated,” revealed to him just how primitive and under-evolved humans really were, no different than any other animal. How dare a mere animal presume to tell him what he needed?

He can admit the nurse's death was a heated decision, but in the end, it made sense to put down an animal that couldn’t learn to behave. If she had stopped her insistence of providing a care he didn’t require, if she had left when he told her, if she hadn’t cited that his father had contracted her to look after him as if he were some deficient child incapable of looking after himself, then she would have lived, and Vlad would have remained oblivious to the reality of their difference. But in the end, she lay dead on his floor, and Vlad felt nothing but mild annoyance at the way the blood from her mouth stained his carpet.

The nurse hadn’t tasted bad, but it was nothing in comparison to the feasts Vlad enjoys now. He hadn’t exactly chosen her for the quality of her meat, she was merely an animal that needed to be put down. And Vlad doesn’t waste resources. So the meat was used. 

It was different now. Now, Vlad knows exactly what characteristics he prefers in his dinner. He’s travelled to different parts of the world, and as much as he likes the exotic meat from other countries, he frequents the good sources he has found within the US. After all, he doesn’t feel like travelling between countries every time, the US is a large territory itself. He luckily likes variety, which worked in his favor, since he doesn’t have the means to raise the perfect meat to fit his expectations. At least, not while he is playing society with the humans. 

Perhaps one day, his control will develop enough that he could create his own little farm; raise humans as he wants, without any of them seeing anything wrong with having an owner that raises them for food. By then, Daniel would have realized how superior they are. They could discuss the best diets for raising flavorful humans, how to design the enclosures, maybe even decide whether to keep a few as pets. It sounded like a wonderful bonding activity for the future. If only Daniel would open his eyes. 

His son has too bland a heart. 

Vlad has considered taking Danny’s little pets, and see if the impact would finally convince the kid to stop throwing tantrums. But killing his son's pets would be cruel. He understood growing attached to mere humans; after all, he had been quite fond of Maddeline himself. Besides, he couldn’t threaten to sacrifice them if he’d already gone through with it, and that was such an effective motivator for Daniel’s obedience… It would be a shame to lose it.

Vlad catches sight of a young woman running up the mountain, carrying nothing but a bag that seems mostly empty in her back. If he had to guess, her group forgot something and she was rushing to retrieve it. He smiled to himself. The woman had toned muscles, which would result in juicier meat. She was tall, but clearly young, with baby fat still softening her face. Vlad didn’t particularly prefer young meat, but it had been a while since he had hunted a younger prey, and he was craving something tender. 

Invisibly, he spiraled down towards her. A strong hit to the back of her neck had her crumpling unconscious into his arms. This was the second more important factor in flavour. The death had to be free of stress, otherwise, the meat would turn dry, and firm, it would be a waste for such tender meat. 

He could have killed the woman on the spot, but that would have been messy, and he prefers flying home without it dripping blood everywhere. So, carrying the unconscious women, he returns to the manor. 

The manor’s sacrifice room is in the basement, and just like his laboratory, it is completely unreachable without intangibility. He phases the clothes off, letting them fall on a box for later disposal and hangs the woman by her feet. With a swift move of his hand, he slides open the external carotid artery, remaining intangible so his clothes avoid the blood as it is drained through the floors built-in channels. The body’s skin is rapidly losing color with its blood, and the room's low temperature will keep the meat in good condition. Vlad can’t help but think about how good the meat from this one will be. Unfortunately, it still needs some time to go through rigor mortis and then eight days for aging. 

Vlad walks past the body to one hanging a couple of spots to the left: a man around his mid-twenties whom he had caught from a boat during last week's hunt. Meat from people that live close to the sea has a more concentrated flavour, and it’s even better when the person frequently went out to sea. 

This corpse had already been dehaired, one of the few processes Vlad hadn’t yet entrusted to Daniel. The boy doesn’t have the power control for it yet. Vlad prefers removing hair with wax rather than scalding and scraping, given how fine human hair is. He bathes the body in a thin layer of wax, then pulls it all off with telekinesis. It’s fast and effective, but Daniel still can’t focus on the thin layer, he only managed to tug the body around awkwardly. 

That was fine. He will get there eventually. Vlad was a patient father.

Daniel should be ready by now, so Vlad unhooks the man’s body, and carries it intangibly to the butchering kitchen. As expected, Daniel is there. 

His son glances up briefly, still flinching at the corpse, which is an annoyance, but Vlad knows Daniel will get used to it eventually. He laid the body on the table. 

“I feel like eating some ribs, so leave that cut out for today. The rest goes to the freezer, as usual. Make sure to be quick, it’s already late.”

Vlad hears the boy swallow before the expected, “Yes, Vlad.” He still hasn’t gotten Daniel to call him father, but that was fine. Vlad was a patient man. 

Daniel kept his gaze fixed on the floor, avoiding the table entirely. Vlad rolls his eyes. It isn’t a big deal, Daniel would get to it within a minute, but Vlad just wished the kid would stop being so dramatic. Taking the knife, Vlad stabs the body between the chuck and the shoulder. Daniel startles, his eyes tracking the knife, then Vlad's arm, and finally meets his gaze. 

“Get on with it, Daniel. It's late.”

“Sorry.” Daniel mumbles, and Vlad considers scolding him for not speaking properly, but the boy finally takes the knife, so Vlad lets it slide.

He lets Daniel do his task, and flies intangibly to his office, there are matters with his latest business venture he wants to check before lunch is ready.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Danny took a deep breath, forcing his hand to stop shaking so he could begin butchering the corpse. He gripped the knife with his thumb and index finger pinching the blade near the bolster, the rest of his fingers wrapped firmly around the handle. Vlad had taught him to hold it that way - he had taught him everything about butchering. He had seemed completely thrilled to share the skill, like it was some kind of bonding activity. Back then, Danny would butcher with Vlad directing him. Sometimes Vlad would place his hand over Danny’s to guide the knife, sometimes he would simply manhandle him into the proper position. Danny had sliced off some of his own fingers while learning, a terrifying way to discover his body could regenerate in human form. It had taken a long time before Vlad finally left him to handle the butchering on his own, along with most of the cooking.

He set the knife above the joint where the leg met the torso and started cutting. The sharp blade slides easily through the flesh until it reaches the joint, where he had to work carefully to find the soft spot. It's not that he wouldn’t be able to cut the bone, Halfa strength allows him to do that easily, but doing so would ruin the knife. Vlad had replaced all the knives during those early weeks, and each broken blade had been punished harshly. Soon enough, one leg is off, and Danny circles the table to work more comfortably on the next one. 

Normally, Danny would have butchered all the corpse before cooking, but Vlad had mentioned that it was late and he wanted ribs, which took hours to prepare. Danny didn’t have time for his usual process. After finishing the second leg, he moved on to separating the arms at the shoulder. He placed all four limbs in the fridge before returning to the torso still lying on the table. Positioning the knife between the clavicles, he drew a vertical cut down to the pelvis, then added two horizontal cuts: one beneath the clavicles and another just above the pelvis. That allowed him to peel the skin aside like a pair of doors. He huffed in frustration at the sight of the opened body. Getting the ribs out without fracturing them was complicated, why did Vlad have to choose such a difficult cut-

The knife clatters against the metal table, slipping out of Danny’s grasp as he stumbles back. He slapped himself hard across the face. It’s not the first time he had caught himself thinking about the process with such cold detachment. Annoyance is the last thing he should be feeling right now. What he’s doing it’s horrifying, this has been a person. A man who once had a future, a life to live. He had been murdered. And Danny had the gall to feel irritated about the difficulty of carving out a piece of his body for dinner? 

He had long accepted he was growing numb to this. How else was he meant to remain sane in this castle? But maybe he was growing too comfortable. He isn’t a monster like Vlad; he refuses to become one. When he returns to his friends, he doesn’t want them to meet someone so deplorable… 

“When.” That's a crazy thought to have. It has been so long since Danny had believed he would see them again. 

Danny draws a deep breath and forces himself to look at the corpse's face. He usually avoids looking at it until the last moment. Somehow the face makes it more real that this used to be a living person; makes the dread of what he’s doing harder to ignore. Still, he wants to ground himself in that reality right now, even if it’ll make finishing the job more difficult. It should be hard, he shouldn’t be okay doing this. 

It’s hard to imagine what sort of life the man had led. With his hair removed and no clothes or accessories, there's not much to go on, but there’s still some hints. His left ear is pierced; he must have worn an earring. There are three small scars under his eyes which Danny would bet were made by a cat. Did he have cats? Hopefully someone would take them in. There's sun damage all around his face; he had most likely spent long hours outdoors. There’s no way of knowing, but given his age it wasn’t a stretch to imagine he might have been married, maybe even had kids. Children who never got to see their father come home. Just like Danny may never see his parents again.

A drop slides down the man's cheek and Danny realizes he started crying. He feels disgusting, but that’s how he should be feeling. This was an appropriate response to the situation. 

He doesn’t think he can finish this. When he picks up the knife his hand trembles worse than before and a nauseating pressure rises against his throat. Danny isn’t sure how he forces it down. 

The next time he’s aware of his own body, the ribs were already in the pot. 

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Tim still can’t believe everything he’s found so far. Everything they’ve missed. It shouldn’t have been possible to hide all of this, not with how publicly it is within the city. Sure, the Justice league kept uncovering secret organizations and cults to dismantle, but those groups went to great lengths to stay hidden, burying everything underground. 

Yet, Tim had just spent the last hour watching TikToks of ghost attacks. TikTok videos. If there was one app that absolutely should not be capable of hiding information, it was that one. 

He might’ve been distracted by how all this information stayed off their radar, if the content itself wasn’t so baffling. This city has been dealing with ghost attacks for almost seventeen months. Seventeen months of constant attacks! One of the ghosts, who went by “Phantom,” had even become something of a local hero (at least for teens), and had helped fend off other ghosts during the first eight months. 

Then came the explosion of the Fenton household. The same household that, very publicly, had a portal to the “Ghost Zone” in the basement. 

Tim can’t believe no one ever chose to do anything about it. Then again, how could he be sure the portal wasn’t what exploded? Maybe it was too volatile to tamper with. Maybe someone did try something, and that was the result. 

Since the incident, ghost sightings have dropped dramatically, though they didn’t disappear. 

Phantom, however, did. Not immediately after the explosion, but he stopped appearing a few weeks later. Forums speculated that with fewer ghosts to fight, the ghost got bored and wandered somewhere else into the realms. Tim didn’t know enough about the ghost to have a conclusion, but it didn’t sit right with him.

From what he was able to skim so far, opinions on ghosts as a species were still pretty divided, if they could even be called a single species. Their anatomy was incredibly diverse. Still, the town became integrated with ghosts in a way that made it seem like the city was mixed, with people used to their attacks in a way that reminds Tim of Gothamites. 

It was while scrolling through one of those tiktoks that Tim fell into an entirely different rabbit hole. A video that, judging by the comments, appeared to have happened just before a big incident. One comment stood out to him:

TiffBeauty: The GIW broke my fence that day, and haven’t answered for it yet :(

Tim assumed GIW referred to a member of the city's rogue gallery, but searching the acronym brought strange results. Despite frequently being mentioned in video comments, there is no news or post mentioning them like there are with other rogues. It took hours of digging through videos where the creators intentionally talked around them to avoid being shadow banned, before Tim finally got a clip showing these so-called guys in white, as the public called them to dodge censorship. Which was insane, censoring within a city that was already being blocked to the rest of the world.

Tim found that the guys in white was a fitting name for the group, they did seem like a parody version of the Men in black, and Tim would have found the video compilation of the “Guys in White being annoying” funny if the situations on the footage weren’t so disturbing. He didn’t have time to hack into the organization's network for more information, but with them in the picture it made sense why Danny clarified that he wasn’t in danger because Vlad was a ghost but because Vlad was an evil ghost. Those guys went around trying their best to brand all ghosts as evil, despite them causing more collateral damage than most ghost attacks. 

It was that compilation that brought another huge issue into the picture. In the video, one of the Guys in White was yelling about something called the anti-ecto acts at a man Tim recognized from his pre-amity research as the director of Casper High. Apparently, these acts gave the Guys In White the authority to inspect school grounds, but the director stood firm, refusing entrance without a warrant. 

Tim was somewhat amazed by the director's courage. The agent was clearly threatening for the discussion to become physical while holding one of their ecto-weapons, and if there was one thing Tim had learned about the organization so far, is that they never operated alone. So there were most likely others just out of frame. 

Tim only scrolled through the video comments for a couple of minutes. Among the flood of praise for the director were the concerning comments from teenagers mentioning they’ve been burned by the Guys In White’s weapons. That only solidified Tim’s growing belief that the agents had no qualms about using violence on civilians, even if those civilians were kids.

The Anti-ecto acts, which went through during Luthro’s presidency, alongside several other “public safety” measures, were a whole new nightmare to deal with, and Tim was growing overwhelmed with how unprepared they were for the situation they had uncovered. 

This was supposed to be a simple mission. They had even thought they were overprepared; 4 bats to get a kid out of the hands of a manipulative billionaire? The only reason so many of them had gone to the dinner was due to the mysterious ways Masters managed to get those ridiculous contracts signed. Normally, a situation like this could be resolved by one or two of them. But now… this has spiraled far beyond what the Bats can handle alone. This was a Justice League level situation. 

Tim skimmed the first page of the Anti-Ecto Acts and immediately sent a copy to Babs before continuing. He didn’t have time to read the entire thing thoroughly, but every line he did see was deeply concerning. It wasn’t just the loopholes it created in existing meta-human laws, or the inhumane treatment it permitted toward ghosts; It was the sheer amount of unchecked authority it granted to the G.I.W. The acts completely disregarded legal oversight. The organization was essentially allowed to arrest without evidence, shoot without provocation, enter private property without warrants, and even place “ecto-contaminated” areas under martial law without notifying any other government agency. 

It was a miracle the G.I.W. wasn’t abusing that power in Amity Park more than they already were. Honestly, it was a miracle the townspeople had managed to push back at all—forcing the agents to follow proper procedures when, legally, those procedures didn’t even apply to them.

Tim’s phone buzzed with a new notification from Oracle.

Oracle: RR, these acts are not being hidden by Amity’s blackout.

Red Robin: What do you mean they aren’t hidden? There’s no way we wouldn’t notice something like this being passed.

Oracle: Well we didn’t. The Anti-Ecto acts have been publicly available since the day they were passed. The league’s had access to them this whole time.

Tim stared at the message, letting it sink in. 

If the Justice League never noticed- If Red Robin and Oracle never noticed… What else had slipped past them?