Chapter 2 - The Power of Steam Compels You

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CHAPTER 2

Wallace Vance looked down from the zephyr drift's observation deck as it descended towards the mining town of Prosperity. He and the other two Spirit Wranglers -- Joshua Mannix, their researcher, and Hennessy Vance, Wallace's kid sister and the group's tech guru -- had answered a request from a medium for a family in need. The Wranglers were between jobs at the moment, so they had no problem packing up and heading to help right away. From the sounds of it, they were needed posthaste.

"See any Rock Men?" Nessy asked, leaning over the railing further than Wallace liked. He knew not to point that out, though, because if he did, she'd be hanging off the observation deck with one hand next.

"No," Joshua said. "They don't tend to come from gold mines. It's not unheard of, but they seem to prefer iron and copper."

"I guess that proves their intelligence levels aren't very high," Nessy said.

"Who are you kidding?" Wallace said. "You'd choose the building materials any day."

"Nuh-uh. You need the shiny precious metals to fund the good stuff. Get the gold first, and then you can horde the copper and iron."

"In any event," Joshua said, "the monsters eat the rocks, they don't spend them. That's one of the prevailing theories, anyway. It's not like anyone knows much about them."

Wallace suppressed a grin at the disappointment lacing his friend's voice. It was true, though; Rock Men were next to impossible to study. They were one of the main dangers of living on the ground in Zephyria.

"There it is, boys," Nessy said, pointing past the mine to Prosperity proper.

It looked like many small towns in Zephyria. One half was a long main street, filled, no doubt, with inns (brothels), saloons, and mercantile, while the other consisted of a residential area. Most of those homes were shacks and lean-tos, but there were a few larger dwellings for the wealthier residents, their clients, the Fergusons, being of that latter group.

"See the wall?" Joshua said, motioning to the ten-foot high lumber barrier surrounding the town. "They must not see many, if any, Rock Men since it's wood and not stone."

The zephyr drift hitched to the station, and as they stepped onto the platform, Nessy let out an exaggerated sigh. "Nice to be back on solid ground."

"I don't know," Wallace said. "I couldn't tell Phoenix was floating so far up."

"I'd think you'd be enamored with our capital city, Nes," Joshua said. "Those anti-gravity devices are just the things that normally have you blabbing tech for weeks on end."

"Of course I'd love to see the anti-grav devices, but I didn't notice either of you offering the chance to go take a look."

"They wouldn't let us down there, anyway," Wallace said. "The only chance our group had to see the Phoenix underground is if there was a spirit loose, and even that's not a given."

"Hmph. I'd find a way. Besides, my gripe isn't with the city, but with the jobs we had. This one has to be easier than any of those."

"Easier?" Joshua said, his eyebrows raised. "We debunked every case with relative ease."

"I believe my dear sister had no problem with the cases themselves, but rather with our hosts and employers."

"Those rich dandies have a way to belittle anyone and everyone, especially those of us who dress sensibly for our jobs, not for frivolity. Any spirit we encounter is preferable to that lot."

"The Fergusons are rich, too," Joshua pointed out.

"Not capital city rich," Nessy snipped back, bringing out a laugh from Wallace and Joshua. She rolled her eyes at them.

At the bottom of the zephyr drift station, they found their gear already loaded into a cart attached to a machine horse. A servant motioned them on. Joshua hopped up, while Wallace followed after handing the boy a quarter-piece copper. Nessy examined the horse, and then joined them on the bench seat.

"Wonder if they have a machinist who builds them in town," Nessy said, motioning towards the horse.

"I have to admit, I'm much happier with that thing leading us," Joshua said. "Those driverless, horseless carriages in Phoenix were a tad unnerving."

The short jaunt to the Fergusons' proved uneventful. Strangers, especially those loaded with boxed-up gear, weren't an uncommon sight in most mining towns, and Prosperity was no exception. As they went, Joshua filled them in on the family again. Neither Wallace nor Nessy needed the reminder, but a last-minute refresher was never a bad idea.

"The family owns Fergusons' General Goods Mercantile, and mirroring the name of the town, it's been prosperous for them. Bart is the head of the household, with his wife, Rachel. They have two children, Abel and Molly, both of age but still at home and working the shop every day. No doubt one or both are tapped to take over when the parents call it quits. As far as I could determine, the family has never before had any big problems, supernatural or not."

Wallace took over. "Since it was Madam Halifax that contacted us instead of the family, I'm assuming it's a spirit we're dealing with, not overactive imaginations. Be ready to debunk, but keep that in mind."

Once they arrived in front of the Fergusons' house -- a mansion, really, even if it wasn't up to snuff with the richest households in any of the major cities -- servants rushed out and unpacked the cart, bringing the gear directly into the house. This was done at a pace to get the Wranglers inside as quick as possible. Wallace could understand. While a supposed haunted house in Phoenix was viewed as an extra status symbol, in most places it wasn't something to advertise to neighbors.

"All human servants," Nessy said.

"Most of the machines are used in the mines," Joshua said. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if there were a few inside."

Once the three stepped in with their equipment, the front door closed. A tall man in a black top hat and suit that wouldn't be out of place in the capitol stepped towards them. "Hello. I'm Bart Ferguson. You are the Spirit Wranglers, I assume?"

"You assume correctly," Wallace said, shaking his hand. "I'm Wallace Vance. This is Joshua Mannix, our researcher, and Hennessy Vance, our tech guru."

"Sister or wife?" a female voice behind Bart asked. "If you don't mind me asking, of course."

"This is my wife, Rachel," Bart said.

"I apologize for my mother. The ghost has relieved her of her manners." This came from the Ferguson son, Abel. He looked a spitting image of his father, just a couple of decades of youth on him. Behind Abel, offering the Wranglers a shy smile, was the daughter, Molly. She proved an almost perfect match of her mother.

"Pish-posh," Rachel said. "It has nothing to do with the ghost, and all to do with working in a town of gold miners."

Her husband and children groaned, while Wallace and Joshua offered polite smiles. Nessy, on the other hand, burst out laughing.

"I can tell I'm going to like you. The big lug, by the way, is my brother."

With the introductions out of the way, Bart Ferguson handed Wallace a bank promise, made out to the amount they'd agreed on. "As we discussed, I'll make out the second when you rid our house of this spirit, malevolent or not."

"Assuming there really is a spirit," Abel added.

Wallace nodded. "I understand the skepticism, even with what your family has experienced. We usually carry quite a bit of it into our cases. This time, however, there is no doubt." He pointed to the far corner of the room. "Your spirit is standing right there, watching over us."

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