A heavy blow hammered down from behind like a sledgehammer!
Kraab's massive mechanical body lurched forward uncontrollably, his four scythe-like legs scrambling to stabilize his balance. The crab-like bounty hunter spun around furiously, his enormous pincer sweeping through the air in a deadly arc!
CRRRAAASSHH!!
The surrounding warehouse walls exploded outward as the pincer tore through them, ripping continuous gashes through the metal sheeting. The walls were completely penetrated, revealing the sky beyond!
Still no target!
Ghostfreak had already phased upward, floating above Kraab's head once more!
WHAM!
Another devastating punch slammed into the top of Kraab's armored skull, causing his visual sensors to go haywire with garbled characters and static interference!
For a full minute, Kraab could only stand helplessly in place and absorb the punishment. He couldn't even detect where Ghostfreak was hiding. Only after taking heavy blow after heavy blow did he finally realize the pattern, his attacker struck from above, then vanished before retaliation was possible!
"This guy is really tough," Ghostfreak muttered, his fists tingling from the impacts.
Even in his enhanced form, punching Kraab's cybernetic body felt like striking solid steel. This bounty hunter was clearly on a different level than the pathetic aliens they'd faced before. Taking him down wouldn't be easy.
"I won't just stand here and take it!"
Kraab roared with mechanical fury. His massive pincer swung wildly, smashing a wooden crate in the warehouse to splinters. The container happened to be filled with red paint, and as the box shattered, crimson liquid sprayed outward in an explosion of color!
Kraab's entire body was instantly stained red.
The ground became slick with red paint pooling across the concrete floor.
High above, Ghostfreak's invisible form was suddenly visible, red paint dripping from his ethereal body revealed his exact position in midair!
"Well, that's unfortunate," Ghostfreak said flatly, his single eye rotating downward to stare at the bounty hunter. "You found me."
"I'm going to tear you apart!"
Kraab's mechanical voice crackled with rage as his enormous pincer shot upward toward the hovering ghost. The massive claw opened wide like a guillotine, preparing to crush Ghostfreak between its steel jaws!
But Ghostfreak didn't dodge. Instead, his pale hands gripped the edges of his protective outer skin.
"Not dodging? Then you've chosen death!" Kraab's optical sensors flashed with triumph.
Fighting head-on was exactly what he wanted. This elusive freak wouldn't stand a chance in direct combat!
RRRIIIPPP!
Ghostfreak's hands pulled forcefully in opposite directions, tearing his pale white protective skin completely apart!
The creature beneath was revealed, an upside-down skull with a single massive eye, surrounded by writhing tentacles. Sharp teeth lined the exposed opening where the protective layer had been. This was Ghostfreak's true form, and it was far more terrifying than anything the paint-splattered exterior had suggested.
"What... what is that?!" Even Kraab's mechanical processors registered something close to fear.
His movements hesitated, slowing for just a fraction of a second, but that was all Ghostfreak needed.
Ghostfreak seized the opportunity instantly, dodging around the cumbersome pincer with ease. His inverted skull face tilted downward, and when he spoke, his voice had become cold and merciless.
"You don't think invisibility is my only power, do you?"
"What do you mean?" Kraab's mechanical pupils contracted slightly with digital confusion.
Suddenly, his surroundings changed completely. He found himself standing on a small wooden boat in the middle of an endless ocean. The sea was calm and eerily silent, stretching to the horizon in every direction.
Everything felt absolutely real. His advanced mechanical sensors couldn't determine whether this was genuine or artificial. His analytical programs ran diagnostic after diagnostic, finding no explanation.
This was Ghostfreak's illusion ability, now enhanced far beyond its original capabilities.
No matter what consciousness a being possessed, organic, mechanical, or otherwise, if they had any form of awareness, Ghostfreak could drag them into his illusory world.
"Enjoy the illusion," Ghostfreak's haunting laughter echoed across the artificial ocean like a death god looking down from on high. "This is the feast I've prepared specifically for you."
Kraab's systems flooded with error messages as he tried to stand up from the boat, but his massive bulk caused the small vessel to rock violently from side to side. His scythe-legs scraped uselessly against the wooden planks.
How could this feel so real? His tactical processors insisted this was impossible!
Then things became even more incomprehensible.
The sky darkened suddenly, storm clouds rolling in from nowhere. Rain began to pour down in sheets, and lightning split the heavens with deafening cracks of thunder. The once-calm ocean transformed into a raging tempest, waves rising higher and higher. Kraab clamped his powerful pincer around the boat's mast desperately, knowing that if he lost his grip, he would be dragged under and drowned in this impossible nightmare.
Back in reality, the others couldn't experience what Kraab was seeing, but they could see the effects. The bounty hunter's body language shifted erratically, panic, disbelief, mechanical jerks of confusion, none of it looked good for him.
This terrifying ghost had proven his combat abilities were just as formidable as his stealth.
And the credit went to its host, Asher Tennyson, whose power amplified every transformation beyond its normal limits.
"Now then..."
Ghostfreak slowly drew his protective skin back over his true form, but the single exposed eye began to glow with an eerie purple light!
That light wasn't just for show.
The glow intensified and condensed in front of him, forming a spherical energy body that crackled with unstable power!
This was Ghostfreak's ultimate ability after his enhancement, Psychic Wave!
The energy sphere's color deepened from pale purple to dark violet, and sparks of electricity began jumping across its surface. The power contained within was growing dangerously unstable, threatening to detonate at any moment!
Meanwhile, inside the illusion...
CLANG!
Kraab smashed his own pincer against his skull with tremendous force!
The impact caused severe damage to his systems, but it also jolted his consciousness back to baseline parameters. His sensors flickered, then stabilized, returning to their previous state of mechanical arrogance, now tinged with genuine panic.
That illusion had been terrifyingly powerful. He'd nearly died trapped in that false reality, unable to escape!
"Are you awake?" Ghostfreak's voice called out cheerfully. "Here's a parting gift for you!"
Ghostfreak released the uncontrolled energy sphere, and it shot forward like a purple comet!
FWOOOOSSSHH!
The Psychic Wave streaked through the warehouse, trailing brilliant violet light in its wake!
"A violent energy projectile?!"
Kraab's analytical systems immediately calculated the destructive potential of the approaching blast. By the time his threat assessment finished, it was already too late!
His mechanical arm yanked an energy blaster from the holster on his back, but he didn't even have time to aim properly before the searing purple light slammed into him!
BOOOOM!!
Kraab's entire body was launched backward violently!
His scythe-legs scraped across the ground, tearing massive gouges in the concrete as the energy wave pushed him relentlessly. He was like a toy being shoved by an unstoppable force!
The purple light illuminated the entire warehouse, bright as day!
And Ghostfreak, bathed in that violet radiance, looked like a living god of death, an avatar of pure terror and supernatural power!
"Don't underestimate me, alien freak," Ghostfreak said coldly, delivering what would be Kraab's most memorable statement of the encounter.
This was the human who had dealt him his first humiliating defeat in what felt like an eternity!
ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!
The Omnitrix's transformation time limit reached zero, and Ghostfreak's form began to dissolve in bursts of green light. Asher fell from midair, landing in a crouch as the last traces of the transformation faded!
The moment he returned to human form, a violent shiver ran through his body!
The residual cold aura from Ghostfreak's presence still clung to him, chilling him to the bone despite the warm summer night.
"That energy blast should at least knock this oversized crab down temporarily," Asher muttered, staring toward where Kraab had been blasted. Doubt crept into his voice. "Right?"
At that exact moment, the Psychic Wave had already carried Kraab completely out of the warehouse. It propelled him high into the night sky, his mechanical body tumbling end over end!
The energy sphere hung suspended in midair for a single frozen heartbeat.
Then...
KRAKOOOOOOM!!
The sky erupted in purple fireworks!
The spectacular explosion spread outward in all directions, dyeing the entire atmosphere violet. Kraab's body was sent flying even farther by the devastating blast, spinning through the air like a ragdoll!
The shockwave from the detonation swept across the entire town, clearing away dust and debris with hurricane force!
The explosion was absolutely catastrophic in scale.
The charge-up time had been lengthy, but when Ghostfreak finally unleashed his ultimate attack, it was a finishing move of tremendous destructive power!
This was the true capability of an enhanced Ghostfreak, perfect for both offense and control!
"Everyone, we're safe now!" Asher turned to face the others, showing them a reassuring smile despite his exhaustion.
Inside the dimensional storage space of the Omnitrix, something stirred.
A shadowy presence drifted through the void like smoke, letting out a chilling laugh that would send shivers down anyone's spine if they could hear it.
"Hehehehe... this human boy is quite interesting. He can make me this powerful. I can't even tell anymore whether his strength enhances mine, or if my power amplifies his. Either way..."
The dark consciousness of Ghostfreak, the remnant of Zs'Skayr's influence that still lingered in the DNA sample, seemed pleased despite being trapped.
"I approve of this host. He's qualified to be my transformation vessel."
For now, at least, Asher Tennyson had earned the respect of one of the most dangerous entities stored within the Omnitrix.