WARNING: There is some mild adult content in this chapter that may make some of you uncomfortable. You have been warned.

The Ghost Pariah

Chapter 1 - Cursed

The life of Betrayus Sneakerus Spheros is a very sad story, and the childhood that created him was no better than the rest of his life or afterlife. But what is his story? How did he become the ruthless ruler of the Nether World? It's constantly hinted that he had a terrible family and little to no friends, but there is more to read between the lines.

This is Betrayus' story.

You must know that his name is not actually Betrayus, but rather the name his parents chose and wrote on his birth certificate is Trayus Seakerus Spheros; the explanation as to how he earned the name you are currently familiar with—well, I'll get to that later.

But to get the whole explanation, we need to go to the very beginning—the night of Trayus' birth. His older brother, Stratos, was only three when he came along, and he was to stay with his older sister while their parents made an emergency rush to the hospital.

It didn't look good. Rotunda and Adjasont had been warned that their unborn son is significantly fragile, and would require utmost careful surgery to ensure his survival. But traffic prevented the expecting couple from getting to their destination via highway, so Adjasont made a half-baked decision to take the back roads near the woods located near the edge of Maze 256.

"Jason, please, stop! I can feel the head, he's coming!" Rotunda pleaded, clenching her teeth and slamming the back of her head into the passenger seat to try and cope with the intense pain.

"He can't! Not yet! Just keep holdin' it, Honey, we'll be there in ten minutes!" Adjasont instructed firmly.

"WE DON'T HAVE TEN MINUTES-AAAAGGHHH!"

The bloodcurdling screams of his wife made his heart race to the point of passing out, but he didn't give up. Making a sharp left turn, Adjasont accidentally made his poor wife a fling into the door.

"ADJASONT!"

"Sorry! Hold on tight! I'm gonna cut some corners!" With that, the pale green, middle-aged man swerved off of the road and drove into the shallow parts of the woods. But his efforts ended in a disaster; Adjasont did not respond in time when a boulder came into view of the headlights, and he crashed into the solid body, effortlessly yielding the vehicle and nearly making the couple fly forward if not for their seatbelts.

Unfortunately, the impact caused Rotunda to bounce up and her head collided with the roof of the car, knocking her out cold; although, the mother was still intact in her seat, her child had nothing to hold him back.

Before Adjasont knew it, he heard a sickening splat as well as a baby sputtering, but it only lasted for mere seconds. He looked over to his wife to make sure she and their son had survived, but what he saw made his blood run cold.

Curled up in a pool of blood and still connected to his unconscious mother by the umbilical chord, their newborn lay motionless on the floor between Rotunda's legs. Despite the mess, Adjasont unbuckled his seatbelt and frantically leaned over to grab his infant son; he was so tiny, helpless and precious, but there was nary a single sign of life in his body.

"No…no, no. Son, please…come back," Adjasont begged the child, shaking him and rubbing his back but never got a breath out of him. He couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. He could not lose his son, a life with his spitting image that he brought into this world.

The grown man wept, bringing his dead child close as tears mixed with blood, choking out, "I-It's not fair…"

"Of course it's not."

Adjasont heard the smooth and deep voice to his right, slowly turning while sniffling to see who the owner of the voice was; he nearly jumped out of skin when he saw a ghost, floating right outside his car.

The tales told and images depicting ghosts were only meant to scare gullible children, but this very ghost was far more terrifying than any artist's or author's creations; his ectoplasm shimmered like obsidian, which was complimented by the spiked armor made from the same material; his helm was grand and greatly resembled that of a crown fit for a king; and clasped in his massive, razor-sharp claws was a staff crafted from ebony quartz and stretched as long as him.

The ghost himself was far larger than the average grown man, with his body being sleek and burly at the same time. As he stared down at Adjasont, his fang-filled grin stretched and his demonic, bright yellow eyes radiated with malice.

"G-Get back, Monster!" Adjasont demanded while trying to climb into the backseat, but the fear in his tone was quite obvious and made the ghost chuckle darkly.

"On the contraire, monsters are creatures with corporeal bodies. As you can see, I share none of the same 'physical' traits," the ghost explained with air quotes.

"What do you w-want?" Adjasont quivered.

"I simply wish to accomplish a life-long goal of mine, and your son could be the key."

"My…son? What?"

"To put it simply: I can save your son, and he can help me in the future. We will both get something we deeply desire."

Adjasont's eyes widened, "H-How…how can you possibly save him?!"

"We ghosts have many powers beyond your mortal comprehension, and I am a—special type of being in the afterlife. And because your son's soul has not yet left his body, act quick and I can bring him out of limbo."

"Why should I trust you? You're evil!" Adjasont snapped while crawling to the window to bare his clenched teeth and scowl.

"Guilty as charged," the ghost admitted in amusement, removing his helmet and bowing respectfully, "My name is Satinlor—King of the Nether Realm. But I am willing to stoop down to help the likes of a commoner like you in exchange for the potential your child holds."

"You…c-can really bring him back to life?"

"Of course. But this offer will not last long, for a soul cannot stay in limbo forever. He will be moving on soon." Satinlor then stretched out a clawed hand. "Take it or leave it, Mr. Stratos."

Adjasont's mind rattled. Affiliating with a demon of the Nether Realm, and not just any demon but the king himself! Just the thought of being in the presence of a ghost so high in the monarchy, it nearly sent the man into a spiral. Just barely keeping his composure, Adjasont finally looked up at Satinlor.

"What's the catch?" he questioned with a suspicious glare.

"You're surprisingly analytic," Satinlor stated matter-of-factly, "You wish to know what will become of your spawn if you were to take my deal? Very well—he will be able to carry out executions, in both mind and body, never before achievable by Pac Worlders. He will become a legend."

"I don't care! I just want to give him another chance!"

"You really want this?"

"Yes! Yes, yes! Please, just save him!" To show that he meant everything, Adjasont reached for the glove box and pulled out a survival knife, using it to carefully cut umbilical chord so that he could bring his son to the ghost.

And upon seeing his desperation, Satinlor's wicked smile returned, "You won't regret this."

Satinlor continued to hold out his claws, to which Adjasont reluctantly handed him his son before hugging him one last time. Once the child was in his grasp, Satinlor's staff glowed brightly with a colorless aura as he waved it over the newborn.

As the colorless aura engulfed the boy, so, too, did his green skin turn pale as snow. He gently opened the newborn's eyes, revealing his lifeless brown irises, "Well, look at that—he has your eyes."

"Really?" Adjasont asked with high hopes.

"In order for this to work, I need your solemn oath," Satinlor instructed firmly, destroying the brief happiness, "Your son will be exposed to elements unknown to man, and he will break under the pressure if you are not there to support him."

"Why wouldn't I be? I'm his father!"

"Yes, I am acutely aware of that. And you need to be aware of the magnitude of our deal. On your child's twenty-fifth birthday, I will return to claim him for the birthright you swore to me. And from that day forward…"

Satinlor paused as he handed the pale child back to his father, who instantly cried tears of joy when he took in his very first breath; unlike the doctors' predictions, the child proved to have a sudden powerful set of pipes, as his cries were strong and loud. Adjasont didn't care, he only cared that his son was alive and well.

"Oh, it's ok, it's ok. Daddy's right here, you're gonna be ok," Adjasont comforted his son, cradling him and speaking softly; his efforts seemed to work wonders, as the newborn almost instantly calmed down.

"…the world will bow before me."

I DO NOT own Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures, only the OC(s) in this story. Anyway, anyone crave a Betrayus origin story? Well, I give you my version. Obviously, this is VERY unlikely to be canon to the show, but I hope you will enjoy.

Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!