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| “ | What's the matter, Ben? Aren't you glad to see me? Haven't you learned by now that nothing can stop me?! | „ |
| ~ Zs'Skayr to Ben after being resurrected. |
Zs'Skayr, also known as Ghostfreak, is the secondary antagonist of the Ben 10 franchise.
He is the sadistic and black-hearted High Ecto-Lord of the Ectonurites of Anur Phaetos and Anur Transyl. Originally stuck in the Omnitrix in the form of "Ghostfreak", he managed to gain control over it after time and escaped, becoming one of Ben Tennyson's most dangerous adversaries.
In the original series and Ben 10: Omniverse, he was voiced by Steve Blum, who also played Vilgax in the same franchise, Red Skull in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Amon in The Legend of Korra, Jindiao in Kung Fu Panda: Paws of Destiny, Makucha in The Lion Guard, Darkseid, Lex Luthor and Ocean Master in the DC Animated Movie Universe, Starscream in Transformers: Prime, Ares in God of War, Killer Croc in the Batman: Arkham series, Lucifer in the Dante's Inferno animated film, Baraka in the Mortal Kombat series, Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man tie-in video game, Captain Cold and Heat Wave in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Zartan in G.I. Joe: Resolute, Green Goblin and the Chameleon in The Spectacular Spider-Man, Bullseye in the video game adaptation of The Punisher, Venom in Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Orochimaru and Zabuza Momochi in Naruto and Kyogai in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. In Ben 10: Alien Force, he was voiced by Jeff Bennett, who also played the Joker in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, D.A.V.E. in The Batman, Darth Revan in Star Wars: The Old Republic, Dick Hardly, Mike Brikowski, and Major Man in The Powerpuff Girls, Boog Shlizetti and Global Warmer in Fanboy & Chum Chum, Tong Fo in Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness, Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam and Sylvester in Looney Tunes and Father in Codename: Kids Next Door.
Biography
Past
Originally, Zs'Skayr was High Ecto-Lord of the Ectonurites of Anur Phaetos and learned of the Omnitrix from the data of a probe belonging to Vilgax that crashed on his planet. Soon afterwards, Zs'Skayr met Myaxx as she was seeking DNA samples and helped her to get some from the nearby planet, Flors Verdance. But unbeknownst to her, the Ectonurite took over the Flourana being sampled, thus she took an Ectonurite sample as well. Since Ectonurite’s personality and DNA were tied together, Zs'Skayr's personality then formed in the Codon Stream even after the real one died. A clone of the Ectonurite was then born inside Ghostfreak.
Ghostfreaked Out
Ghostfreak having freed himself from the Omnitrix.
| “ | Now let's see how you like being trapped inside someone else! | „ |
| ~ Zs'Skayr before he tries to possess Ben. |
After Ben Tennyson gained the Omnitrix, Zs'Skayr's personality became more and more present whenever he turned into Ghostfreak. After some time, Ghostfreak finally freed himself of the Omnitrix and confronted Ben, tearing away his outer layer of skin to reveal his intimidating, true form.
Wanting to become whole again, Zs'Skayr attempted to possess Ben, but failed to after the sun drove him back. He sought out the Circus Freak Trio and got them to aid him by threatening them when he took over Thumbskull, possessing and tossing him around the room. Zs'Skayr went with the trio to confront Ben and tried to possess him, but since Ben had been changed into Four Arms at the time, he couldn't do so.
The Ectonurite took over the Circus Freak Trio to fight Ben, but they were defeated one after another. However, Ghostfreak took over Gwen and used her to fight Four Arms, who eventually regressed back to Ben. The Ectonurite then threatened to make Gwen jump off of the wall they were fighting on if Ben didn't give up. Ben agreed with Zs'Skayr and Zs'Skayr sent the Circus Freak Trio after Gwen and Grandpa Max, before trying to possess the boy thus breaking the deal with Ben.
However, Ben was able to transform into Grey Matter just in time and Zs'Skayr continued to pursue him. Eventually Ben changed back to normal and the Ectonurite prepared to again try and possess the boy. However, he noticed that it was daytime outside and opened the curtains on the building they were in, destroying Zs'Skayr in which his return was going to happen soon.
The Return and Be Afraid of the Dark
Zs'Skayr's return in The Return.
However, Zs'Skayr was not finished yet with Ben and a Transylian scientist from the Anur System named Dr. Viktor began working to revive him. He stole material from the clock tower where Zs'Skayr had been destroyed from Ghostfreaked Out and gained the help of a Thep Khufan and a Loboan from the Anur System. As well as bringing back Zs'Skayr, Viktor prepared to plunge the Earth into eternal darkness for Ghostfreak, his master to rule. Onboard a NASA Space Shuttle, Viktor revived his Ectonurite master to face Ben Tennyson again. Then with Corrodium that the Thep Khufan had retrieved, Zs'Skayr and his minions then used a Corrodium beam, blocking out all light from the Sun. With the Earth consumed in eternal darkness, the Ectonurite was fully empowered, but this didn't last long.
Viktor was tricked into destroying the Corrodium beam and Max opened the space shuttle’s roof, exposing him directly to Earth’s sun and destroying him once and for all. At the same time, Ben managed to regain Ghostfreak on the Omnitrix but ended up never using him.
Five Years Prior to Omniverse
The flashback episode From Hedorium to Eternity depicts Zs'Skayr possessing the body of Thaddeus J. Collins who uses Kevin Levin to bring adults to him so he could use his minions to possess them and rule the world. His plot is discovered by Ben, Gwen, Cooper, Lucy, and Jonesy. After a fight between Upgrade and Ghostfreak, Cooper reverses the portal that brought Zs'Skayr and his Ectonurite relatives to Earth, pulling them all back in. Zs'Skayr swears revenge on Ben as he is sucked into the portal. It is presumed he was put back inside the Codon Stream.
Alien Force
| “ | Darkness falls. Earth is now my domain! | „ |
| ~ Zs'Skayr to the Tennysons after mutating all of Earth. |
Zs'Skayr imprisoned.
Zs'Skayr was eventually removed from the Codon Steam and imprisoned using sunlight by the Galvans mostly it was Azmuth's decision. However, Vilgax freed him in exchange for the secrets of the Omnitrix and the knowledge that would let him finally beat Ben. Ghostfreak told him about Primus, the location of the Codon Stream, but as soon as Vilgax freed him, the Ectonurite betrayed and deceived him wanting to possess his power to become all powerful.
Zs'Skayr with his army of Ectonurites.
Ghostfreak took over Vilgaxia, Vilgax's home planet, by possessing the citizens, transforming them into Ectonurite creatures. Vilgax tried to fight them but was forced to retreat and went to Earth to ask for help from Ben, Gwen, and Kevin. They went to Vilgaxia and infiltrated Vilgax's palace where they found Zs'Skayr, who revealed that Vilgaxia was just the beginning and his army of Ectonurites were already building ships to spread their master's influence on other planets.
Zs'Skayr in Ben's body.
The Ectonurite possessed Ben, which was actually part of his plan since it trapped Zs'Skayr back in the Codon Stream. Ben transformed into Ghostfreak, but the Ectonurite quickly took control and began fighting Gwen, Kevin, and Vilgax. Eventually Gwen and Kevin were knocked out and Zs'Skayr managed to knock Vilgax’s sword away. He made his minions restrain the conqueror so the Ectonurite could possess him as well. But Vilgax freed himself and used light from his sword to weaken Zs'Skayr, letting Ben regain control and change back, trapping the Ectonurite back in the Omnitrix once and for all, never to escape ever again.
He later appeared in a flashback where Vilgax recalled how he freed Zs'Skayr for the secrets of the Omnitrix before making his way to Primus to take over.
Omniverse
Zs'Skayr makes his return in "Mystery, Incorporeal", being seen crawling out of the portal to Ledgerdomain. According to himself, Ben left him trapped there, and Darkstar opening the portal allowed him to escape. Derrick J. Wyatt states that after Ben destroyed/dispersed him in their last battle, Zs'Skayr used the magic of Ledgerdomain to reform himself there.
In "Rad Monster Party", He, along with Dr. Viktor, Kuphulu and Crüjo attempted to defeat Ben and his team, only to be defeated by NRG. His main objective was to regain his title as High Ecto-Lord.
In "Charmed, I'm Sure", He has drained a large portion of energy from the Alpha Rune which angers Charmcaster. Though he thinks it is completely powerless and is now useless, but that is not the case.
In "The Vampire Strikes Back", Zs'Skayr used the power he had drained from the Alpha Rune in order to resurrect Lord Transyl, and create a powerful servant in order to regain his title as High Ecto-Lord. This was against the objections of Dr. Viktor, who remembers how Lord Transyl's race had enslaved his people. Ultimately, Zs'Skayr's plan comes to naught as Viktor betrays and deceives him after discovering the truth of what the Vladats did to his species the Transylians and he is once again burned to ashes, this time by Ben as Atomix. While he is seemingly killed, Ben states that he will return someday, so he leaves a light fusion orb called "Fusion Cuisine" in Zs'Castle Zs'Skayr so Zs'Skayr could not get in and just in case if Zs'Skayr ever return.
Video Games
Protector of the Earth
Zs'Skayr appears in the video game Ben 10: Protector of the Earth as the secondary antagonist. In the game, he freed Vilgax from the Null Void, joining forces to have revenge on Ben. He also took over Hex so as to use his magic as a means of summoning his minions from the Anur dimension. Ben managed to stop this and Zs'Skayr left Hex before heading to Mt. Rushmore to steal Plumber technology for Vilgax's plan to suck the Earth into the Null Void. After attacking Chicago with his army and bringing the tech to Vilgax, Zs'Skayr attacks the boy again in the Gold Coast Theater. However, the Ectonurite was defeated by Ben once again and banished to the Null Void by him and Max.
Vilgax Attacks
Zs'Skayr in Vilgax Attacks.
Needing to obtain the last energy core to destroy Vilgax’s Null Void Projector, Ben found out that it was in Anur Phaetos. However Anur Phaetos was not technically a planet, rather it was an alternate dimension he, Gwen, and Kevin couldn't access. Verdona managed to bring them to the Anur dimension, but accidentally split them up and Zs'Skayr revealed that he was still alive. He confronted Ben, saying he was most unwise to set foot in his homeworld and sent his minions after his enemy. Ben managed to fight them off and face Zs'Skayr himself, but defeated him using light.
Personality
Zs'Skayr with his second skin.
While the rest of Ben's aliens were DNA copies and whenever he transformed he retained his own characteristic, Zs'Skayr was a fully sentient being with his own personality, being depicted as nothing more than a sadistic, cold-hearted, cruel, ruthless, dangerous, terrifying, psychopathic and black-hearted creature. Whenever Ben transformed into Ghostfreak, he would have control of the body more than Ben did, and was able to speak his own sentences and actually choose himself instead of other aliens. As Ghostfreak, Zs'Skayr was quite aggressive and belligerent, like when he violently beat Zombozo and his circus freaks, but after freeing himself, he revealed his sinister and sadistic ways. Zs'Skayr was also deeply resentful and vituperative towards Ben Tennyson and his Omnitrix, and as such, took great twisted entertainment in trying to murder the young hero and his family. In a twist of irony, after freeing himself from the bonds of the Omnitrix, he was left unwhole and needed to possess his despised enemy to become one again.
Perhaps Zs'Skayr's most prominent trait was his overwhelming arrogance, as he underestimated his enemies, specifically Ben, and believed that he could have destroyed him in his human form which led to his first destruction in Ghostfreaked Out. He was naturally treacherous and manipulative; for example, when he was freed by Vilgax from his prison, he invaded Vilgax's home world instead of thanking him. Zs'Skayr's violent and destructive nature was also shown when he rallied the Circus Freaks with threat of death and used blackmail to get Ben to hand over his Omnitrix.
Zs'Skayr was proud of his true name and apparently hated being referred to as "Ghostfreak", and when he returned in Omniverse, demanded to be called as such. The true extent of his evil was never shown, however, until he was prepared to block out the sun and mutate life on all of planet Earth just so he could become all-powerful.
Powers and Abilities
Standard
| “ | Here in the darkness of space, I am at my full potential! | „ |
| ~ Zs'Skayr revealing darkness makes him stronger to Frankenstrike. |
- Ectonurite physiology: Zs'Skayr is an Ectonurite, also known as Ectonurian, a phantom-like, protoplasm-based lifeform hailing from Anur Phaetos, a rocky planet rotating around the anti-matter sun. After being accidentally sampled by Myaxx while helping her collect Florauna DNA, Zs'Skayr was trapped in the Omnitrix, becoming incomplete and having to merge with the first person that would wear the Omnitrix to become whole again. Throughout the series, Zs'Skayr gained several abilities that were not natural to average Ectonurite, making him powerful enough to singlehandedly infect and take over Vilgaxia. However, it is implied that he has lost them as of Omniverse as he does not use them, but in return he learned to use magic and wield scythe as a powerful close-quarter weapon. His standard set of powers includes:
- Tangibility manipulation: Zs'Skayr can render himself intangible as a potent defense as well as a means of penetrating high-security areas. He also has the ability to make certain pieces of himself tangible or partially corporeal. While remaining intangible, this expanded skill can be utilized to interact with the world or battle. It can also be used to cause a stroke by targeting Thumbskull's brain. When Zs'Skayr touched Frankenstrike, the two of them phased through the floor of a space station and onto its hull. He can even turn individuals into ethereal and translucent beings by touching them.
- Invisibility: Zs'Skayr can make himself invisible at will, becoming invisible to a naked eye. The only way to detect him in that state is through heat-seeking devices.
- Possession: Zs'Skayr has the ability to inhabit biological beings and exert complete command over them. After gaining control, he can also make advantage of any skills his victim may have. In the original series, the eyes of anybody he owned would become black with pink irises and black fissures around the eyes. Zs'Skayr often utilized this ability to make other characters levitate mid-air and violently slam against the walls as a form of intimidation, as well as a defensive measure to counter his sunlight weakness. Aside from standard, organic beings, Zs'Skayr can possess mechanical species like Chronosapiens and Galvanic Mechamorphs, amorphous like Polymorphs, and even Celestialsapiens and other Ectonurites.
- Soul consumption: Zs'Skayr can consume souls within one's body, stripping them of their consciousness in the process. He used this ability only once to cleanse Dr. Viktor's body from King Xarion's possession.
- Natural weaponry: Zs'Skayr can retract elastic, prehensile black tentacles with white stripes out of his chest, which used to be his primary weapon in combat prior to Omniverse. These tentacles are strong enough to hold down a bus full of people, and just one of them can throw Vilgax off himself. Other that that, he possess razor-sharp talons that can slice through Vilgax's mechadroids and a Chimera Sui Generis' armor. He can also control his bones to a certain degree, allowing him to rotate his skull at will.
- Superhuman strength: Despite his rather lean frame, Zs'Skayr possesses immense strength as he is strong enough to go toe-to-toe with several physically powerful transformations, being able to grapple with Frankenstrike or shatter Bloxx to pieces with a single swing of his scythe.
- Soullessness: Due to bizarre, extraordinary concept of life that Ectonurites exhibit, Zs'Skayr and his species do not possess any life-force. This makes him immune to life-force siphoning of energy vampires like Michael Morningstar or Vladats, and presumably Anodite's Mana tracking.
- Darkness affinity: Like many beings from Anur System, Zs'Skayr is naturally independent from oxygen and can survive in space without protective suit. Unfiltered cosmic radiation appears to actually make him even more powerful, as he attained a more powerful form that could shoot purple-colored energy beams out of his chest.
- Tangibility manipulation: Zs'Skayr can render himself intangible as a potent defense as well as a means of penetrating high-security areas. He also has the ability to make certain pieces of himself tangible or partially corporeal. While remaining intangible, this expanded skill can be utilized to interact with the world or battle. It can also be used to cause a stroke by targeting Thumbskull's brain. When Zs'Skayr touched Frankenstrike, the two of them phased through the floor of a space station and onto its hull. He can even turn individuals into ethereal and translucent beings by touching them.
Former
- Telekinesis: When he was trapped in the Omnitrix, Zs'Skayr could use his mind to move objects without touching them, as he made several Bunsen burners erupt and explode through chemical reaction. He would later use this ability against Vilgax during Vilgaxia's conquest, using pillars as a projectile weapons against Chimera Sui Generis. It is unknown if he retains this power in Omniverse.
- Telepathy: Zs'Skayr could communicate with Ben mentally, even while inside the Omnitrix. He could enter and edit his dreams, turning them into demented stalking nightmares in which he would threaten him. He could also cast illusions, making his eye appear in Bunsen burner's liquid, showing his shadow when Ben was walking through Bancroft Academy, or even seeing him traverse in broad daylight.
- Ectonurite conversion: Zs'Skayr could "infect" other species with his essence by possessing them, turning them into mindless drones with secondary suit that could further transfer that essence by possessing anyone they touched. He could verbally summon them at will and use in combat against powerful opponents like Vilgax. After being defeated, these minions would revert back to normal. It is implied that Zs'Skayr has lost that ability in Omniverse, as he does not use it anymore despite how useful it was.
Abilities
- Magic: In Omniverse, it was revealed that Zs'Skayr has studied magic for unknown period of time, using his knowledge to reform himself in Legerdomain after his last death in Alien Force. He could teleport Charmcaster with one flick of his talons, and was powerful enough to steal the Alpha Rune from her earlier off-screen, both instances implying that he is a superior sorcerer to her. After Zs'Castle was infiltrated for the first time by Charmcaster with a help of Ben and Rook, Zs'Skayr simply teleported his entire castle to another location. It is implied that living pumpkins guarding his castle were created by him through magic.
- Scythemanship: In Omniverse, Zs'Skayr wields a sharp scythe that he can swing with great force, enough to shatter Bloxx to pieces. He could also use it as an extension of his arm, throwing Dr. Viktor off of himself by pulling at his Tesla coil when Whampire mind-controlled the Transylian with Corruptura.
- Social influencing: Similar to Vilgax on Vilgaxia, Zs'Skayr is beloved and respected in Anur System. After being weakened to near-death by NRG, an entire crowd immediately attacked the transformation, giving Dr. Viktor and Crüjo enough time to take him away to safety.
Weaknesses
- Sunlight: Without naturally generated secondary protective skin, Zs'Skayr can no longer hover freely in sunlight and has to possess other beings in order to resist it. Depending on the episode, he may be burned instantly or require few moments of agonizing exposure, giving Zs'Skayr a chance to leave. Each death appears to make him more resistant to sunlight, to the point where in Omniverse, he could fly in a full sunlight without any issues at Friedkin University and resist NRG's true form's light emission, requiring Atomix's Fusion Cuisine's blinding light to be killed.
Trivia
- Zs'Skayr's name is a corruption of the word "scary".
- The way it is pronounced is like saying "the scare".
- In both the original series and Alien Force no one called him Zs'Skayr - they only called him Ghostfreak.
- His appearance in Alien Force had a few differences from his original one, such as more spikes on his body, fangs, a more exposed striped tail, and white claws as opposed to black. Zs’Skayr's voice is different too.
- Ben finally learns Zs'Skayr's name in Rad Monster Party.
- In the same episode, he stated that he never answers to the name Ghostfreak and prefers to answer to his actual name.
- In Vilgax Attacks, Zs'Skayr implies that he is undead ("Alive? Interesting word choice.", "Ben 10, as I live and breathe... not!"). However, according to Derrick J. Wyatt, Zs'Skayr is alive, but the Ectonurite concept of "life" is just very different from most sentient life forms.
- The features on Zs'Skayr's face are placed so that his face looks like an upside-down skull.
- Zs'Skayr's head was turned right side up in Omniverse because Derrick J. Wyatt never understood the upside-down head. He expanded on this, saying that he always wanted to because it is how he displayed his figures of the character.
- Zs'Skayr is a symbolic antagonist referencing to the behavior patterns of a stalker in real life, in which it is the best and almost realistic way of how stalker behaviors work. It is shown in Zs'Skayr's Revenge and Escape Arc as referenced on how stalkers actions are brought to life, and it was later shown by Derrick Wyatt for Ben 10 Omniverse: Galactic Monsters when the stalker behavior would be shown in reference to a realistic stalker.
- According to Derrick Wyatt, Zs'Skayr and Vilgax are very afraid of Ma Vreedle.
External Links
- Zs'Skayr on the Pure Evil Wiki.
- Zs'Skayr on the Ben 10 Planet.
