Book One

## Chapter 1 - Pilot Pt. 1

On the first day of September, a songbird flew over the town of Westvalley, passing by four-story apartment buildings made from brick, soaring above homes with triangular roofs, and steering clear of a nearby tram, which had the colors of brass and copper. The sun shone bright, contrasted against a blue sky with few white clouds. Mountains surrounded the town on one side, the other being ocean, as dogs barked and people walked or biked. Westvalley was as lively as ever, yet quiet in its own way.

Matthew Turner's deep green eyes opened, as he brushed his darker green, almost black, hair out of his face with his hand. He yawns and sits up in his bed, looking out at the neighborhood through his window. He rubs his eyes for a moment, before getting out of bed, taking some folded clothes off a desk, and walking past a poster of a superhero clad in metal armor out of his room to shower.

Matthew walked down the stairs to see his parents. His dad was a tall man with blonde hair, brilliant green eyes and decent build, along with a bit of stubble on his face, and wore a green t-shirt and brown jeans. His mom was a woman a bit taller than Matthew, with greenish-black hair, warm brown eyes, and black glasses on her face. She wore a purple, more loose t-shirt, along with blue shorts that went down to her knees.

"Good morning, Matthew." His mom says sweetly.

"Morning." Matthew replies quickly, walking over to the table to begin eating his bacon.

"So, how was your birthday yesterday?" His dad asks in a joking manner.

"It was great!" Matthew answers with a near-shout. "Thanks so much for the Steelman poster!"

"Heh, it used to be those toy robots and superhero action figures a few birthdays ago." His dad remarks. "They grow up so fast."

"This year's your last school year before you graduate." His mom explains to him. "We both hope you'll be on your best behavior."

"I will, Mom!" Matthew responds. "I promise."

"You had better." His dad retorts. "We really hope you succeed out there, Matthew."

"Thanks, Dad." Matthew says back. "See you two tonight."

"Be safe out there." His mom responds, hugging him as he hugged back.

Matthew was walking towards the nearest tram station, looking at recent news on his phone about a farm having been found destroyed a week ago. he didn't know if it was real or not, but he still felt bad for whoever lived there. As he reached the station, he barely avoided bumping into a disheveled man with slightly tanned, slightly wrinkly skin, along with greying brown hair and greyish brown eyes, under which were bags. He had a small bit of stubble on his face, and his clothes looked slightly ragged.

"Hey, Kid." The man says in a slightly gravelly voice.

"I'm not a kid anymore." Matthew replies.

"Look, you may be eighteen, but you've still got some growing to do." The man retorts. "Matthew, right? Don't exams come out in the summer? Until you finish those, you won't even be ready for college, let alone the real world."

"Uh...okay." Matthew replies, a bit concerned this time. "Who are you, by the way?"

"Jayson Wallace." The man answers. "I'm not feeling too great since my wife died a decade or so ago."

"Oh...I'm sorry for your loss." Matthew says.

"Don't apologize for something you didn't do, Kid." Jayson responds. "I don't need your pity, 'specially since I've kind of already reached the acceptance stage of grief a few years ago."

Rather than continue the conversation, Matthew decided to stay silent, now feeling a bit uncomfortable as he began inching a bit away from Jayson. Right then, the tram arrived, looking a little worse for wear and covered in tarnish and rust but otherwise alright. They walk into one of the tram cars, as the driver takes a second to make sure everyone is on board before beginning to move again.

"So, where're you guys all headed?" The driver asks.

"Back home." Jayson answers. "I just came here to enjoy the scenery, it's so...colorful."

"I'm going to school." Matthew pipes in, as a few other people around his age nod in agreement, along with a thin, elderly man wearing glasses, a blue shirt, a black tie, and a brown jacket and jeans.

"Right, and I'm headed to Lexa's Pizza after my shift is done." The driver replies. "I think we can all agree that place is the best."

Most everyone in the tram car nods, before Matthew looks out the window and sees them go from suburbia to apartments, the tram passing by a woman walking a golden retriever.

A thin man with orange hair and blue eyes leaned on an office chair, his feet resting on the windowsill, his legs crossed against each other as his arms lay behind his head. He wore a somewhat tattered shirt, jacket and jeans, all red plaid, and had a dark brown leather trenchcoat and hat resting on a coatrack. He looked out the window at the apartments around him, tuning out the air conditioner running next to his seat and desk. From the angle he was sitting at, it was only possible to see the streets because the room itself was at an angle of the building. A cigar sat in his mouth, though it seemed to have not yet been lit. Before he could light it, however, he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." He says, putting the cigar in his pocket, as the door opens, a somewhat tall, dark-skinned man with stubble on his face, wearing a blue police uniform, walks in. "What do ya need, Sheriff?"

"Another person's gone missing near that damned mansion of Jayson's." The Chief of Police says. "We need your help in investigating the area, Huxley."

"Haunted house, yay." Huxley replies. "Let's just see what we're dealing with this time."

"Let's *also* look for a *non*-supernatural culprit." The Police Chief retorts, half-joking, half-not. "We need to find out exactly what's going on, and that means looking at every other explanation first."

"Yeah, yeah." Huxley responds, following the Police Chief out of the room.

Matthew hopped out of the tram, walking towards the high school. It had the same general aesthetic as the rest of the area, looking quite a bit like another red-brick apartment building with a flat white roof. But it was the largest building in the town, and the center was taller than either of the sides, making it look a bit like an armchair. He grins, and walks to the entrance.

"I am glad to welcome everyone back to Westvalley High." The principal, a pink-haired and amber-eyed woman wearing a white office shirt and black office jeans says. "As I understand, this will be the last year for a few of our Senior Students. Matthew Turner, Lavina Vonner, and Tobias Allan, please step up to this stage."

Matthew walked up to the stage, as did two other people. One, Tobias, was a thin young man with pale, almost waxy-looking skin and shaggy black hair. His eyes, too, were black, and had bags under them, as he wore a black sweater and blue sweatpants. The other, Lavina, was someone he had only seen from a distance before, and never really got a good look at. When he did see her though, he thought she was beautiful.

She had long purple hair, which covered one of her eyes, they themselves being purple. Her skin was white as snow, her clothing, which consisted of a mesh top, cloth jacket, and leather shorts, were black as night. She was rather curvy, but even moreso endowed, and the way she walked suggested she knew all this. She also wore a black beanie on her head, with stitching on its front that resembled a flask.

Matthew felt his face growing hotter, and felt a little numb, before he noticed Tobias raising an eyebrow at him, and snapped back to his senses with a small yelp. Lavina had heard the yelp and noticed him, giving a curious look before the Principal directed their attention towards the rest of the students.

"These three are the oldest students who are still with us." The Principal explains to the students. "In a few months, they will be ready for their exams, and then, graduation. Please hold a round of applause for them."

The students began to cheer for the three of them, Matthew nervously waving while Lavina waved at them all. Tobias just stood there, not seeming very excited by all this.

A moment or so later, the three were walking through a hallway towards their lockers.

"Hey, uh, Lavina?" Matthew asks.

"Hmm?" Lavina responds.

"I, uh...it's nice to meet you." He continues.

"Heh...it's nice to meet you, too." She replies, turning around to face him.

Matthew blushes like mad again, and felt himself beginning to slow down a bit.

"Uh...nevermind." He then says. "S-sorry for bothering you."

"...Aww..." She says in response, though he couldn't tell if it was an 'aww' of cuteness or an 'aww' of disappointment. She then turns around as they keep walking.

"Way to mess it up." Tobias chimes in.

"I-I don't stand a chance." Matthew retorts, Tobias' upper eyelids drooping in seeming annoyance.

"You know officers, I'm really getting annoyed by all these visits." Jayson groans. "I know this place better than anyone, and no one's snooping around except all of you."

"There may be something here you don't know about." The Police Chief replies. "We're investigating the perimeter, but tomorrow we're gonna investigate the actual house."

"With that superstitious moron you brought with you?" Jayson retorts, waving his hand at Huxley.

"I've dealt with a lot of these." Huxley replies. "Sometimes it's just magnetic fields or carbon monoxide, sometimes it's something more exciting."

"For the last time, my house isn't haunted!" Jayson roars.

"Tell that to all the people who go missing here." Huxley retorts with a small smile. "I bet any crazy stuff that happens in your house is from all the ghosts fighting each other."

"There are no ghosts!" Jayson responds angrily. "Seriously, what has gotten into all of you?!"

"Please, Mr. Wallace." The Police Chief reasons. "We just want to make sure nothing bad is lurking around here, since you could very well be their next target."

"...Fine, whatever. Just don't tear the place apart." Jayson groans, crossing his arms.

"Welcome, class." A tall, black-eyed and thin man with neat, shoulder-length black hair says. He wore the same type of outfit as the Principal, but a bit looser. "I'll be your history teacher this year...like all years, really. Mason Snow, at your humble historical service."

"Hi." Matthew replies.

"Everyone, please turn your local history books to Chapter 54, Page 27." Mason asks. "The Inferno of Westvalley."

As they do so, Mason taps his pointer on the markerboard, showing the town of Westvalley in flames.

"In 1972, an arsonist attacked a warehouse full of gasoline, electronics, coal and wood." Mason explains. "This arsonist, Tyson Byrne, merely attempting to harm the government, ended up creating a massive explosion and dying in the process. The fire quickly spread to the rest of the town, and it took all night to put it out, after which at least a thousand people had already tragically lost their lives."

As Matthew was writing down notes, he noticed that Lavina was writing something different. Before he could think about what it might be, he felt his face getting hot and turned back down to his notebook.

"Among the people who died was the surgeon, biologist and medical scientist Anthony Irwin." Mason continues. "Many have suspected that he had something to do with the arson, despite the fact that he was nowhere near it and known to be a rather upstanding citizen. It's simply a local conspiracy theory that we unfortunately have to our town's name."

He places the pointer on a picture of Tyson Byrne, a man with black glasses and short dirty blonde hair.

"Can anyone tell me what Tyson's motive was for the arson?" Mason asks, seeing Tobias raise his hand without turning up to look at them. "Yes, Mr. Allan?"

"His mother had been arrested by the FDI after being framed for kidnapping a government official." Tobias answers flatly. "The government official, Truman Robbins, had been known to be a very people-first politician, and was kidnapped and killed by Hayes Olson, who refused the reason as to all this right up until his execution in 1976."

"Very good, Mr. Allan." Mason replies. "Can someone else tell me the hero who saved an apartment building full of people all on his own?"

Matthew hears this, perks up, and raises his hand.

"Yes. Mr. Turner?" Mason asks him.

"It was my grandpa, Westin Turner!" Matthew answers excitedly. "He brought a barrel of firefighting supplies with him to guide everyone in the Cherry Apartment Residence to safety!"

"Excellent, Mr. Turner." Mason responds. "As anyone new to this town will now know, the statue of Westin Turner can be found in the center of the town, as one of the four statues surrounding the Westvalley Clock Tower."

Matthew noticed Lavina had been listening intently to his explanation, and blushed a bit again. Lavina merely giggles and returns back to writing whatever it was she was writing. A few other students gave Matthew various looks, before Mason got all of their attention by once again tapping his pointer on the markerboard.

"That will be all for now, Class." Mason says. "I expect you all to take notes from today's lesson and do more thorough research into this rather important historical event for our small town. Especially since its anniversary is coming up next month."

They nod, and put their things back into their backpacks before walking out of the room.

"I hope you've all had a wonderful day so far." The Principal says atop another stage, this time in the cafeteria. "I am saddened to inform you of a field trip we'd all be taking to Jayson Wallace's Mansion, that unfortunately was cancelled due to a police investigation taking place there."

"Isn't that the mansion people go missing near?" Lavina wonders.

"For now, I believe you may all have a break. Be sure to collect your notes and do your homework tonight and tomorrow." The Principal finishes.

Matthew walks into a smaller brick building, only two stories tall, with the wooden sign 'Tanner's Tools' nailed onto each non-alleyway corner. Inside, working on a broken tram car, was a somewhat tan-skinned man, large in stomach but moreso in muscle, wearing all the typical gear of a mechanic and currently using a welder and wrench.

"Mr. Evans?" Matthew asks, as Tanner slides out from beneath the tram car and lifts the welding mask up to reveal his black, biker-like mustache and his slightly faded brown eyes.

"Welcome back, Matt." Tanner replies. "This should only take a half-hour longer to fix."

"You know, I'm surprised we still use these." Matthew remarks.

"When they work, they work." Tanner responds, putting the welding mask back on. "And when they don't work, I make 'em work."

"Yeah, you do have a knack for that." Matthew says. "You have any more spare parts?"

"I've got spare everything from all the unfixable stuff folks bring me." Tanner answers jokingly. "I'd like to know what you use those parts every day since they seem to always 'go missing'."

Matthew chuckles nervously, as Tanner's phone rings. A moment later, Tanner slides back out from under the tram car to put the phone to his ear.

"Tanner's Tools. What can I do for ya?" Tanner asks, listening for a moment. "Alright, bring the bike here and I'll deal with it as soon as I get this tram car fixed. Don't keep the customers waiting."

"Who was that?" Matthew asks, as Tanner puts his phone in one of his pockets.

"Pizza delivery guy." Tanner explains. "His motorbike broke down across the street from here, he was delivering to the Barker Family."

"Oh..." Matthew breathes.

"Yup, the King, Queen and Prince of having a chip on your shoulder." Tanner jokes, as the pizza delivery guy walks in with his smoking motorcycle.

"It just broke down a few blocks from the customer." The pizza delivery guy says, as Tanner examines the motorcycle.

"Damage looks like something's wrong with a valve spring." Tanner remarks. "I'll need longer to be sure, but you get that pizza delivered in the meantime."

"...Oh no..." The pizza delivery guy realizes. "I forgot the diet soda!"

"Which brand did they ask for?" Tanner asks.

"Uh...I think it was Pixie?" The pizza delivery guy answers, unsure.

"I've got some in the fridge back there." Tanner responds.

"Thank you, Mr. Evans!" The pizza delivery guy shouts, going to the fridge and drawer to put a bottle of soda into a bag.

"Don't mention it." Tanner replies. "You can pay me after I'm done."

The pizza delivery guy nods, and runs out of the building to get to the Barker Family's apartment.

"This is the first time I've seen you work two things at once." Matthew says. "I didn't know you ever did that!"

"Yup, I can usually solve 'em quickly, but they can pile up sometimes." Tanner says back. "You can take a look at the motorbike if ya' want, the more problems solved at once the better."

Matthew nods, and begins to examine the motorcycle.

"Pretty nice place you've got here." Huxley says. "Doesn't look in the best of shapes, though."

"I'm not exactly a housekeeper." Jayson replies. "Things just haven't been the same since she died."

"And how exactly *did* she die?" Huxley asks.

"Stabbed by a crazy hobo." Jayson answers with a rather small stutter. "I managed to take the guy out and get his weapon, but it was too late for her."

"Right..." Huxley responds. "...I wonder what *her* story'll be."

"What do you mean?" Jayson demands. "She's gone, she's not here anymore! There is no such thing as ghosts!"

"Either you're dumb, or you're hiding something." Huxley retorts with a smile. "Because I've dealt with a *lot* of--"

A slight chilly breeze, despite no windows or doors being open and all the vents being broken.

"...ghosts." Huxley finishes.

"Probably a spore or some carbon monoxide." Jayson explains. "That's what 'ghosts' always are."

"Correction." Huxley counter-explains. "That's what ghosts *usually* are."

Huxley then notices a knife sitting on a countertop, the blade covered in dried blood, before walking towards it.

"This the murder weapon?" He asks.

"Yeah, ripped it right out of the killer's hands and stabbed him in the neck with it." Jayson explains.

"Hmm, maybe his ghost is the one kidnapping everyone." Huxley remarks. "Or her ghost, or both of them separately."

He takes out a pair of chopsticks and picks up the knife with them.

"Hey!" Jayson shouts. "What are you doing?!"

"Taking this in for analysis." Huxley answers plainly. "Not sure if there's anything still workable here but we won't know until we try."

"...Fine, fine..." Jayson mutters, Huxley raising an eyebrow at him.

Matthew was walking through the park after having learned the inner workings of a motorcycle engine when he spots Lavina leaning back while sitting on a bench. He feels himself blushing again but decides to try and talk to her again, walking over to him.

"Oh, hey." She says, turning her attention towards him.

"H...hi." Matthew replies. "S-sorry about earlier, I..."

"Don't sweat it." Lavina responds. "I'm not mad at a boy getting flustered around me, actually happens quite a lot."

He shakily nods and takes a gulp.

"Say...do you wanna come to Jayson's house with me and some friends of mine?" She asks.

"Oh! Uh..." Matthew yelps. "...isn't that trespassing?"

"What you don't know about doesn't hurt you." Lavina replies. "I just wanna see the ghost that everyone says lives in or around the mansion, not steal stuff. I've got my own stuff and I bet his stuff sucks."

"I'm...uh...I'm not sure the cops will see it that way." Matthew explains.

"The same cops who're investigating him?" Lavina counters. "If we can help them solve this case, we'll be famous across the town!"

"W-wouldn't that make us vigilantes?" Matthew worries.

"Vigilantes aren't illegal here." Lavina responds. "Your grandpa's a hero, right?"

Matthew nods after a moment.

"Then this is a chance for you to follow in his footsteps!" She finishes.

"...Al...alright." He says. "Let's do it."

"Great!" Lavina shouts. "I'll get everything ready!"

"...Ugh..." A tourist groans, waking up and realized he was chained up inside a particularly large doghouse. "...What...what the fuck?! Where am I?!"

"The last place you will ever live in." A deep, muffled and gravelly voice replies, as the door to the doghouse opens, and a man clad in brown medieval clothing and covered in brown belts walks inside. He wore a brown leather mask on his head that concealed everything but his eyes, and on his wrists were vicious blades made from brass.

"Who are you?!" The tourist roars. "What do you want?!"

"This is not something I want, it's something I need." The figure explains, walking closer to the man. "I need to satiate my urges, so thank you for being here, so that I could kill someone not from this town for a change."

"No! No!" The tourist screams. "I-I'll do anything, just let me li-"

A slash to the throat. The tourist immediately died, his screams cut off, as the figure looks over at a shovel, his eyes narrowing, yet his pupils shrank and his lower eyelids raised up, as if he were grinning beneath the mask.

## Chapter 2 - Pilot Pt. 2

Matthew and Lavina were walking through the large front yard of the mansion, a crow cawing behind them as it watched.

"How did you not chicken out?" She asks with a small smile. "Alyvia and Miah got cold feet after hearing the news."

"I'm kinda' freaked out by that, too..." Matthew replies. "...but, I wanted to come with you anyway. To, uh...to make sure you're safe and...not disappoint you."

"Aww, you really are sweet." She teases in response, running towards the mansion while keeping the black witch hat, which she had brought, on her head with one hand. Matthew, blushing once again, follows behind as fast as he can.

A black-haired, dark-skinned, yellow-eyed young man wearing slightly loose white robes was walking into Westvalley, followed by a curvaceous young woman with short white hair, blue eyes, and silver-colored skin. She, too, wore white robes, though they fit her form more and looked more, for lack of a better term, futuristic in nature, and on her back was a blue cape. As the two made it to the entrance, a security guard greeted them.

"You two lookin' to come in?" The guard asks. "Got passports?"

"Right here." The young man replies, handing the guard a passport that read 'Hesso Abboud'.

"Well, says you're of age." The guard remarks. "My shift ends right about now, so I'll show you both around."

"We thank you ever so much." The young woman responds with a bit of a bow. The security guard raises an eyebrow in confusion, before letting them both in.

"This place gives me the creeps..." Matthew whispers, trying to walk as silently as possible through the mansion.

"I know, right?" Lavina replies quite casually. "I love supernatural stuff, so this is an awesome place to be."

"Well, I'm glad for you..." He responds, as they continue to walk through the mansion, Matthew hearing every small creak of wood and feeling every last drop of sweat.

"Hey, there's something over here!" Lavina shouts, running into another room. Matthew, barely holding in a yelp of surprise, follows after her, both of them unaware of something watching them from behind as they go.

"That over there is Lexa's Pizza." The guard explains, pointing to a one-story brick building with, indeed, a wooden sign reading 'Lexa's Pizza' on each non-alleyway side. "Best meals you'll find in this town, great delivery service too."

"I cannot wait to try Lexaspizza!" The young woman shouts excitedly. "Oh, I'm Nayla."

"Didn't exactly ask." The guard replies, as a tram passes them by.

"Ooh! What is that?" Nayla asks.

"Tram." The guard answers. "It's the main mode of transport in this part 'o town."

"Uh, forgive Nayla for her questions." Hesso says. "She's a pretty curious girl."

"Yeah, I got that." The guard responds. "I don't really mind."

And then, they made it to the center of the town, where a massive clock tower made of brick and wood sat.

"This is the Westvalley Clock Tower." The guard explains to them, sounding more proud. "It was the thing the town was built around, and it still runs pretty smoothly to this day."

And then, he waves his hand to direct their attention towards a massive bronze and copper statue of a muscular man in a fireman's suit.

"This is one of our local heroes, Westin Turner." The guard says to them. "Saved a bunch 'o people durin' a town-wide fire a few decades ago."

"Wow!" Nayla yells. "I want to be just like these heroes!"

"Maybe someday you will." The guard replies jokingly. "Me, I need to get back to my family. Nice guidin' ya', but you both need an actual tour guide, and a place to stay."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Security Guard." Hesso responds, the guard walking to a nearby tram station.

Lavina walked over to a dining table, and picked up a photo that had been resting there.

"Look, Matt!" She shouts, Matthew blushing and walking over to look at the photo, which showed Jayson, much younger-looking, standing next to a beautiful woman with long black hair, wearing a white dress.

"Who's that?" Matthew wonders, taking out his phone to take a picture of the photo and run it through an internet search. "...Huh."

"What's it say?" Lavina asks.

"Esme Wallace." Matthew half-answers, half-remarks. "She married Jayson after he saved her and her cat's life, and a few years later, she was killed by someone who broke into their home. The killer was never found."

"Cool!" Lavina shouts again. "It's a murder mystery!"

And then, they heard something shaking, turning to see a knife rise into the air and rush at them!

"Woah!" Matthew yelps, leaping out of the way as Lavina did the same.

"An actual ghost!" Lavina exclaims. "Awesome!"

"It would be if it weren't trying to kill us!" Matthew retorts, dodging another swing of the knife.

Lavina was currently searching for something in a bag she had brought with her, as Matthew kept desperately dodging knife swings. When he tripped and was about to be stabbed in the face, a small purple forcefield appears to stop it.

"Huh?!" Matthew shouts, before turning to see Lavina pointing a wand at where the forcefield formed. He wastes no time in running over to her as the forcefield dissipates. "What was that?!"

"Didn't the hat give it away?" Lavina replies with another smirk. "I'm a witch."

"You have a teleportation spell?!" Matthew asks.

"Hmm, haven't learned that one ye-" Lavina answers, cutting herself off to blast apart a cabinet that had been torn out of the wall and tossed at them. "Jeez, what did we ever do to you?!"

"Run!" Matthew yells, running out of the room and through the hallway outside as Lavina decides to follow behind.

"Seriously, why do ghosts attack people who had nothing to do with them?!" Lavina demands. "Why do they just attack anything that moves?!"

"Jayson's gonna kill us if he finds out we got his cabinet broken!" Matthew shouts. "And that's if we survive the ghost!"

Suddenly, they are slashed from behind, and sent to the ground!

"GAH!" Matthew screams.

"GUH!" Lavina shouts.

As they both turn around to see their attacker, they see a man clad in brown clothing, including a mask that hid all but his eyes, with brass blades on his gloves.

"Wrong." The figure replies coldly, before slashing at them again.

Lavina manages to block the slashes with another forcefield before helping Matthew up so they could start running again, Matthew watching the figure's movements. The figure began to follow them, slashing more and more and beginning to weave around barriers to get closer.

"Dammit, this guy is fast!" Lavina remarks loudly, unleashing another magic blast at him from her wand, but he dodges and slashes at them again, sending them both to the ground again as Lavina dropped her wand this time.

"Argh!" She grunts, as Matthew began fading in and out of consciousness.

"Now, both of you shall join my victims." The figure says, before suddenly whirling around to block the same knife from before!

"Wha..." Matthew groans, as the figure rushes beneath the knife and blocks it again, dodging a small table and lamp thrown at him shortly after. More of the furniture, decorations and appliances in the hallway were thrown at the figure, many in quick succession and many going two or three at a time, but the figure kept ducking and weaving to avoid them.

"No guy who dodges like that treats this as a one-time thing..." Matthew remarks.

"This must be the guy who killed Esme!" Lavina shouts, a bit quieter than usual. "And Esme's the ghost!"

"Then why was she trying to attack us...?" Matthew asks.

"Probably to get his attention." Lavina theorizes, right before noticing an entire wardrobe flying at their faces after Jayson had dodged it! "Woah!"

She pulls Matthew out of the way of the wardrobe, which splinters and shatters upon contact with the door, forcing them open as well, which revealed someone standing there, having also dodged the wardrobe.

"And who exactly are you?" The figure demands.

"Detective Huxley Hoffman." Huxley answers with a smile. "You look ridiculous in that outfit by the way, Jay."

"Jay...?" Lavina wonders.

"...Jayson Wallace?!" Matthew shouts.

Jayson, his eyes making it evident that his face was contorted in rage, rushes at Huxley, dodging a lamp that Huxley grabs by the cord to swing at him. The killer blocks with the blades, and attempts to slash the Detective, who sidesteps both that slash and the subsequent one before stomping on his foot.

"Argh!" Jayson grunts, trying to slash at Huxley with both claws, but Huxley leans back and knees Jayson in the stomach, kicking him in the chin the moment he flinches back. "Grah!"

"I've gotta' say, Jay." Huxley taunts. "I expected better skills from a guy who had to put up with the wife he murdered for ten or so years."

"Don't mock me!" Jayson roars, attempting to slash at Huxley's stomach.

Huxley sidesteps this slash as well, before elbowing Jayson in the back to send him to the ground, then kicking him in the face to send him flying back a few feet.

"Woah..." Lavina breathes, as Matthew looks on in awe.

Esme, still enraged, tears two lit torches out of the wall to stab at Jayson, who notices just in time and ducks to let Huxley be hit, but Huxley leaps back and takes out a Glock to shoot both the torches out of Esme's hands.

"I'll take this from here, Ma'am." Huxley jokes, getting into more of a fighting position as Jayson, screaming in rage, slashes at him quickly and furiously. The Detective dodges each and every slash with minimal effort, whacking Jayson's forearm with his own to cause the claws on that glove to become embedded into the wall.

"Damn you!" Jayson shouts, slashing at Huxley with his other claw, but Huxley dodges and grabs the forearm of that arm, before bending it back enough to dislocate it. "GRRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!"

And then, Huxley, as casually as if he were grabbing a shirt of his, pulls the mask off of Jayson's face.

"You..." Jayson growls, as Huxley grabs a torch thrusted at his face by Esme, using it to light a cigar he had put in his mouth during the previous exchange before putting his phone up to his ear.

"Yeah, Sherrif, we've got a serial killer over here." Huxley explains, somehow keeping the cigar in his mouth. "You'd better come quick since his first victim is currently trying to burn my face off."

"How did you know?!" Jayson demands, Huxley ending the call and putting his phone back in his pocket. "How did you know it was me?!"

"Wanna know how's DNA we found on the hilt of that blade?" Huxley asks, briefly taking the cigar out of his mouth. "Yours, and *only* yours."

"...Ghhhh..." Jayson growls.

"Now, then." Huxley says. "Mind coolin' off, Ma'am? We did help you finish your business, after all."

Esme pauses for a moment, before sighing placing her hands on the flames of the torches to snuff them out.

"That's more I like it." Huxley remarks, tossing the torch behind himself and putting the cigar back in his mouth.

"...Now, I see." Esme says, her voice sounding fittingly ethereal, turning towards Jayson. "I had wanted to kill you in revenge, trap you here right along with me. But now I see that you would take sick pleasure from tormenting those who came here, as you already do. No...your best punishment, as I now see, is living out the rest of your life in a trap that prevents you from indulging yourself."

"I'll hold this as my unfinished business!" Jayson roars. "I'll haunt this entire damn town!"

"Yeah, sure." Huxley replies. "Right up until a Ghost Hunter finds you."

And then, Huxley punches Jayson in the face to knock him out.

"That was amazing!" Lavina shouts, as Huxley and Esme turn towards her. "All that kung fu, I'm sure Toby would be impressed!"

"...Who's Toby?" Huxley responds, Esme staying silent before looking out at the mostly full moon.

"Th...thank you for saving us...Sir..." Matthew pipes in, looking dizzy and a bit pale.

"You might wanna get him to a hospital." Huxley says.

"Oh! No need." Lavina replies, picking up her wand and running over to Matthew before tapping him on the back with it, his wounds beginning to heal.

"Wh..." Matthew breathes, before passing out.

"He'll need a bit before he gets all his blood back and heals fully, but that should speed up the process." Lavina explains. "I wish I had mastered the spell by now."

"Well, I know jack shit about magic, so good luck I guess." Huxley replies. "Let's all get outta' here. It's time someone else moved in and renovated the place."

They begin to walk out of the hallway, police sirens being heard in the distance, as Esme, smiling a bit, disappears. She could finally rest in peace.

The Westvalley Clock Tower's bell began to ring at the stroke of twelve, as in his parents' garage, Matthew was welding something together. That something...was a gauntlet.

## Chapter 3 - Knight at the Museum

"And this is our wonderful Museum!" A plump, brown-haired man in a brown suit says with a smile. "Just today, we've opened a brand-new exhibit! The Medieval Exhibit! Don't ask why we didn't have one before."

"Woah!" Matthew near-yelps.

"For so long, we've had this fine Museum, and now it comes one step closer to feeling like one!" The man, the Mayor, continues. "On the cutting of this red tape, the exhibit will be avaliable for all to see!"

And at that, he cuts the red tape, and people start walking inside the exhibit.

"I wonder which suit of armor that is..." Mason remarks. "...perhaps we should do a study on Gilebertus the Traitor today."

"Gilebertus?" Matthew asks, as Mason looks over at him in seeming slight shock.

"I'm glad to see you take interest, Mr. Turner." Mason responds, a small smile then appearing on his face. "Gilebertus was a knight back during the Dark Ages of England. He joined a coup against the Crown, not out of a sense of wishing to help the poor and weak, but instead wishing to seize power himself. Whatever exactly happened then, he died the night of the coup, and his armor was recovered a few decades ago."

"Wow..." Matthew remarks. "...so he was like, a really bad guy."

"Comparatively, not really." Mason corrects. "Though I'm sure if he had lived to see his plan fail, he would have sought vengeance on everyone he deemed responsible. Both the Crown that overpowered him, and the peasants who were unable to aid him."

"Who wants to bet his ghost is haunting the Museum?" Lavina says, laughing a bit along with her friends.

Matthew chuckles nervously, really hoping that Gilebertus was not, in fact, haunting the new exhibit.

"So you are interested in this topic as well, Miss Vonner?" Mason asks.

"I like chasing ghosts." Lavina answers.

"I don't." Tobias interjects. "Let's not do whatever you're planning."

"I'll take that as a 'Take me with you, Vina, please!'." Lavina retorts."

"The most unrealistic part of that statement was the pet name." Tobias retorts back, beginning to walk away before he notices something. "...Does anyone recognize those two?"

"Oh?" Mason replies, his gaze turning towards two people. One a dark-skinned young man with black hair and yellow eyes, the other a silver-skinned young woman with white hair and blue eyes. Both wore white robes, though the girl's was much more, for lack of a better term, futuristic-looking than the boy's. "You look new to town."

"Yeah, we kinda are." Hesso confirms. "Nayla and I have been looking for a place to stay, you know any?"

"Probably an apartment building somewhere." Tobias replies. "But why here of all places?"

"It was closest." Hesso explains. "Also, we wanna learn about this town, so we're considering becoming students here."

"We'll be seniors, too!" Nayla pipes up. "Like grumpy old men!"

"That's...not what 'Senior' means in this context." Mason responds. "Regardless, if you wish to become students, then you absolutely can. You'll just need to sign here, and preferrably bring your parents or other guardians along."

"Oh..." Hesso breathes.

"For now, you may all enjoy the Museum. I'm certainly going to." Mason says, walking into the Museum.

Huxley was leaning back in his chair, his feet on his desk, with a cigar in his mouth. He looked on at the city, hearing the news of the museum from a television screen in his room, as the door opened.

"Yep?" Huxley asks, turning around to see the Chief of Police, Quinell Dorsey, standing there.

"You heard of the new exhibit?" Dorsey asks, closing the door as he puts a few photos on the table.

The photos were of a slightly tan-skinned man with short blue hair, blue eyes+, red glasses, and a triangular jawline. The words read 'KALYEN BOLLOCK', and showed the numbers 56475 and 2-13-67.

"Never heard of him." Huxley answers bluntly.

"He's a notorious art thief." Dorsey explains. "He recently escaped prison, and we think he's going to try and make a hit and run of the Medieval Exhibit."

"Well..." Huxley replies, taking the cigar out of his mouth and blowing out the smoke. "...can't let that happen, now can we?"

Matthew, Lavina, Hesso, Nayla and Tobias had headed inside the museum, seeing dinosaur skeletons, old war weapons, and ancient artifacts. Though they only took a brief minute or two to look at some, as they walked into the Medieval Exhibit, along with a man who was wearing black work jeans and a black hoodie with his hands in his pockets.

"Wow...it's amazing!" Matthew shouts, looking on at the tapestries and paintings, the recreations of weapons and buildings and animals, and the centerpiece of the museum was a suit of armor with a halberd in its hands. The nameplate on the stand of which read 'GILEBERTUS THE TRAITOR'. "This must've been the guy."

"Hey, Gilbert!" Lavina taunts, lightly tapping her fist on the chestplate of the armor. "Got any repressed rage in there?"

"Don't touch the museum stuff." Tobias says, a bit more stern than his usually deadpan self. "That's how you get thrown out or arrested."

"I was just looking!" Lavina retorts innocently with a grin.

"This place does feel strange..." Hesso remarks. "...especially the armor."

"It's probably just your imagination." Tobias replies. "Let's go see if they have a Japan Exhibit yet."

"It's never just Hesso's imagination!" Nayla shouts. "He constanty deals with evil spirits!"

"I doubt a couple of barely-not-kids could deal with *one regular* spirit." Tobias snarks, beginning to walk away.

"Hey, I'm open to hear him out." Matthew retorts. "I've got something cool of my own!"

"Oh?" Lavina chimes in. "What is it?"

"U-uhhh..." Matthew stammers, blushing. "...I-I'll show you all later!"

"Can't wait to see." Hesso replies. "We should really get to know each other more, since we're gonna be friends."

"Yay! New friends!" Nayla yells, bearhugging Matthew.

"O-ow..." Matthew groans.

"This piece is quite wonderous..." Mason remarks, looking on at a painting of a castle siege. "...the siege of the castle that Gilebertus himself led, no doubt."

"Yeah, it's definitely pretty..." The hooded man from before replies, looking on at the same painting. "...doesn't belong all couped-up here in a stuffy old museum."

"Oh?" Mason exclaims, turning towards the man. "Are you intending to purchase the painting?"

"...Something like that." The man answers.

"I could help you with the purchase, if you wish." Mason responds. "Though I do prefer for its beauty to remain here for all who visit the museum to appreciate."

"...Guess that's a point of conflict, then..." The man mutters, turning away from Mason.

Then, everyone notices Dorsey talking to the Museum Curator, who shakily nods before taking out a megaphone.

"I-I'm afraid we'll have to close for today." The Curator announces. "The police are investigating the museum until they can apprehend a suspected thief."

"Aww..." Matthew groans, as Mason began to lead them all out of the museum.

Matthew, Lavina, Hesso, Nayla and Tobias were all sitting on benches in a park, the moon shining overhead as a tram went past said park.

"I can't believe it." Matthew says. "Someone tries to steal from the museum right as it opens?"

"What makes this so hard to believe?" Tobias asks.

"I say we take out the thief first!" Lavina declares.

"...*What*?" Tobias demands.

"We take out the criminal and call the cops!" Lavina explains. "Plus I really, really, *really* wanna see a ghost knight!"

"You wanna get be in jail tomorrow Saturday, that's what you want..." Tobias grumbles.

"...We really should check out that presence..." Hesso remarks. "This town seems nice, I'm sure they'll appreciate the help."

"If we're doing this, then I need to get something from my parents' garage." Matthew says. "Give me a few minutes, I promise I'll be quick."

"We'll be waiting for you at the Museum." Tobias replies. "That is, if we're not in jail by the time you arrive."

Matthew opens the garage to his home and walks inside, noticing what he was looking for still safely inside the crate he brought here.

"There you are..." He remarks. "...let's test you out."

Lavina and the others were standing outside the museum, having managed to find an entrance not heavily guarded.

"Where is he?" She wonders.

"Probably got cold feet." Tobias half-jokes. "I don't blame him, honestly."

"Someone's approaching!" Nayla shouts, pointing at a figure wearing some kind of power armor. It looked like a mix between mechanic gear, jouster armor, and typical power armor parts.

"Hey, guys." Matthew says, his voice muffled.

"Ooh!" Lavina replies. "This must've been what you were working on, eh?"

Matthew didn't verbally respond for a moment.

"Let's get inside before a guard gets here." Tobias says, unlocking the door before they all walk in...followed by the hooded man from earlier, who was now wearing a face-mask.

"Is it just me, or is this place pretty creepy at night?" Matthew asks.

"That thief could be looking for anything..." Tobias whispers. "...though if they're only attacking now, then I think I know where we should search first."

"Please let there be a ghost, please let there be a ghost, please let there be a ghost..." Lavina repeats under her breath, as Hesso quietly looked around for any supernatural activity, Nayla staying close beside him.

Kylen had stopped tailing the group a little while ago, and was now walking through the Medieval Exhibit, noticing Gilebertus' armor...and the painting beside it.

"Finally..." He whispers, taking out a screwdriver and walking towards the painting. He began to work away at it, getting rid of everything that kept it stuck to the wall.

"I knew there was something fishy about you." Tobias says from behind Kylen, who yelps in surprise and whirls around, being punched in the face by the student before stumbling back.

"Argh..." Kylen groans, holding his now-bleeding nose in pain. "Who the fuck are you?!"

"Someone who's ready to call the police at any moment." Tobias answers, revealing the phone in his hand, and that it was a tap away from calling 911.

"You're never gonna press that button!" Kylen roars, drawing a pistol and pointing it at Tobias.

"Hey!" Matthew shouts from behind Kylen, who turns around to fire at him...the bullet bouncing off of the metal shield on Matthew's arm.

"What the Hell...?" Kylen groans, before noticing Lavina pointing her wand at him.

"Frog or lizard?" She asks. "Your choice."

"...When I'm done with you kids..." Kylen growls. "...They'll have to scrape you off the floor!"

Kylen noticed their now-terrified faces, and grinned, before he heard metal footsteps. Before he knew it, Nayla had tackled him out of the way, and a halberd had dug itself into the ground!

"WH-WHAT THE FUCK?!" Kylen screams, scurrying back and shooting at the knight armor that had swung the halberd, as it was dented where the bullets hit but otherwise unharmed.

"Finally, a ghost!" Lavina shouts in excitement, as Matthew goes to slash at Gilebertus, who takes the slash before kicking him back.

"Guh!" Matthew grunts, holding his stomach in pain as he saw Tobias leaping back.

"Congratulations!" He yells. "You finally found your damn ghost! *Now* what?!"

"We finish its business!" Hesso replies.

"What business does a long-dead knight have to finish that we *want* finished?" Tobias demands, dodging a swing from Gilebertus' halberd.

"Let's get out of this corridor!" Matthew says, before he notices Kylen running for his life. "Hey, wait!"

"Fuck all of you, I'll get the painting later tonight!" Kylen roars, before he's suddenly tripped over by Huxley. "Gah!"

"...Well, ain't this somethin'." Huxley remarks as he sees Gilebertus.

"Crap." Tobias mutters.

Gilebertus runs towards Huxley and swings his halberd at him, the detective ducking under it to palm the ghost knight, only being kneed in the stomach and thus sent flying as a response.

"Gruh!" Huxley grunts, rolling out of the way of another halberd strike.

"Angry spirit!" Hesso shouts. "Why are you in anguish?"

Gilebertus turns towards Hesso and, without a word, leaps at him to swing his halberd down at him.

"Woah!" Hesso yelps, leaping out of the way before leaping back to dodge another strike. Matthew is quick to ram into Gilebertus by the elbow, sending him stumbling forwards before Lavina blasts the long-dead knight with her wand.

"You people think you can mock me..." Gilebertus growls, turning towards Lavina. "...I will put your heads on pikes and raze your village to the ground!"

"...Uh...sorry?" Lavina replies weakly.

"And that, is why you do NOT, touch museum stuff!" Tobias shouts.

Gilebertus swings his halberd at Lavina, who barely manages to leap back before creating a forcefield to block the next strike.

"Are you seriously this petty, dude?!" Lavina yells.

"...You're a witch! You shall be burned for this!" Gilebertus realizes.

"...Oh...right..." Lavina mutters, before her eyes widen in shock at the halberd breaking through the barrier, and she once again barely manages to get back!

Kylen noticed that they were distracted with Gilebertus, and attempted to make a run for the painting when he was elbowed in the back by Huxley.

"ARGH!" Kylen roars in pain, attempting to shoot Huxley in the face.

"You really must be determined, huh." Huxley remarks, dodging the bullets before kicking Kylen's gun out of his hand and pointing his own gun at him.

"...D'oh..." Kylen groans, lowering his head onto the ground.

"You shall perish for your heresy, witch!" Gilebertus bellows, right as he brings his haleberd down on Lavina's head...but the head of the halberd is caught in one of Nayla's hands, before she glares at him. "What?!"

"You will not hurt my new friends!" Nayla shouts, before ripping the halberd out of Gilebertus' hands and kicking him in the chestplate, causing him to shatter into all the armor's parts.

"Woah!" Matthew shouts, as Tobias and Lavina look on in shock and awe, and Hesso looks on in determination as the ghost of Gilebertus finally becomes visible.

"Fine, then!" Gilebertus howls. "I will slaughter you all with this incoporeal form! AND THEN I WILL SLAUGHTER ALL OF EUROPE!!!!!"

"You will do no such thing!" Hesso retorts, placing a golden staff on the ground as circles of a golden energy surround the ghost.

"What?!" Gilebertus demands.

"Malevolent spirit, for your crimes against humanity, you shall be punished!" Hesso declares. "Accept your fate and allow yourself to be sealed!"

And then, the circles began to enclose Gilebertus!

"WHAT?! NOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!" The ghost knight roars, as he was seemingly dematerialized into a greenish bluish white energy that soon became gold, before that energy, along with all the circles, dissipated and flew into Hesso's staff.

"...Woah..." Matthew breathes.

"What *was* that?" Lavina asks in amazement.

"I'm an exorcist." Hesso explains. "I can seal evil ghosts into my staff with that incantation."

"Isn't he so cool?!" Nayla yells, as Hesso chuckles and rubs the back of his own head.

"Well, nice seeing ya'll again." Huxley remarks, kicking Kylen to knock him out. "You might wanna all get out of here, now. I'll make sure everyone relevant knows the whole deal."

"Thanks." Matthew responds, before they walk out of the museum.

"How awesome was that?!" Lavina shouts back at the park. "We took down a criminal and a ghost knight!"

"Yes." Tobias replies. "Truly the pinnacle of awesomeness. There is nothing else I would rather have done. Certainly not sleep."

"And you were amazing, Matt!" Lavina says, turning to him. "That armor of yours is so cool!"

"Th-thanks..." Matthew replies weakly, his face turning red.

"This was a great bonding experience!" Nayla says. "What are we doing next?"

"According to Mason's schedule, we're going to some theme park tomorrow." Tobias explains.

"Huh, sounds interesting." Hesso replies. "I think I'll bring this, just in case."

"I seriously hope that ends up being unecessary." Tobias mutters.

Matthew smiled at them all, and looked up at the moon, thinking about the adventure they had just had.

## Chapter 4 - Fright Fest

"Welcome to Dreamworld!" A bombastic announcer boomed as a bus parked. "Where all your dreams...come true! Heeheeheeheeho!"

Matthew, Lavina, Tobias, Hesso, Nayla, all the various other students, and Mason all walked out of the bus, as Matthew, Hesso and Nayla's eyes grew wide and they grinned at the amusement park they were in.

"It's amazing!" Matthew shouts.

"I already love it!" Nayla also shouts, as Hesso nods in agreement.

"I can't wait to try whatever they might have here." Mason remarks. "And do be careful at some of the larger rides, I heard an...incident happened at the Clown Coaster a while ago."

"This park just became ten times cooler!" Lavina squeals in excitement. "Come on, Matt! Let's look for a ghost!"

"W-woah!" Matthew yelps, blushing hard as Lavina grabbed his hand and began running, though she didn't have the first clue where the Clown Coaster actually was.

"It's always something, isn't it..." Tobias groans, before looking for a restaurant.

"My, my..." Mason remarks with an amused small smile. "...whatever am I going to do with you all?"

Matthew and Lavina stopped in front of a large pirate ship ride, which was most definitely not the Clown Coaster.

"Oops!" Lavina says. "My bad!"

"Are you looking for the Clown Coaster?" A clown with puffy green hair and a purple suit and eyes says with an ear-to-ear grin. "I would be happy to help yo-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" Matthew screams, hiding behind Lavina and trembling. "DON'T EAT ME!!!!!"

"Wow, what was your Birthday Clown like?" Lavina asks Matthew, before the clown in front of them preforms a bow and comedically falls over, before getting back up and dusting himself off.

"I'm Bim Bam!" The clown announces, having kept the same grin the whole time. "I'm the mascot of Dreamworld, Bim Bam!"

"Are there really ghosts, here?!" Lavina asks Bim Bam, once again sounding excited.

"Ghosts?!" Bim Bam asks back. "I wouldn't know about any *ghosts*! Though there is a spooky monster ride over there!"

He points over at a ride called 'The Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors', at which Lavina's eyelids droop and her smile vanishes.

"Lame!" She spouts, before Bim Bam moves his face uncomfortably close to hers, yet still keeping that same grin despite his eyes now showing anger.

"Oh I can promise you, girl." Bim Bam hisses, somehow still grinning. "The Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors *will*...deliver on your expectations."

Then, Bim Bam stands back upright, all the anger seemingly now gone.

"I really encourage you to enjoy your stay, here!" Bim Bam shouts. "The Clown Coaster is somewhere around a corner to your right, have fun!"

And then, Bim Bam walks away, and Lavina turns to see Matthew clinging to her and whimpering.

"Let me guess." She says. "Birthday Clown actually *did* try to eat you."

Matthew nodded shakily, before he noticed he was clinging to Lavina and quickly let go.

"I'm sorry!" He yelps. "I am so, so sorry!"

"Hey, I get it." Lavina replies, before whispering into Matthew's ear. "I, err...don't really like spiders."

"N-not that..." Matthew stammers. "I-I-I shouldn't have t-touched you without asking..."

Lavina just giggles at this.

"At least you weren't immediately trying to undress me." She responds. "And if *this* clown tries to eat us, I'll turn him into a frog! How's that sound?"

Matthew gives a shaky thumbs up, before they notice the others walking towards them, Tobias holding a ridiculous amount of funnel cake plates.

"This is the only thing I ever come to amusement parks for." Tobias explains. "The food."

"I'll ride this ride, first!" Nayla shouts, leaping into the pirate ship ride and buckling herself in as it began to rock back and forth.

"Quick one." Mason remarks. "I'll go and look for a more atmospheric ride."

"Hey, how did you meet Nayla?" Lavina asks, as Hesso turns towards her.

"Oh, met her on my travels." He answers. "She's a really sweet girl, though I'm sure you already know that by now."

Like most everyone else on the ride, Nayla was screaming in excitement, a wide and true grin on her face.

"I've found a nice and atmospheric ride for us all." Mason says. "The Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors, I believe its called."

"Oh, that." Lavina responds. "Fine, let's do it. They're just gonna use a bunch of animatronics and CGI, anyway..."

Everyone walked into the Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors, looking around at the predictably gothic arcitecture and paintings of people.

"Welcome, mortals, to the Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors!" A deep-voiced announcer says from somewhere. "I am glad you chose such a perilous place to be, for we could always use a few more...permanent...guests."

"If you tricked me into getting on some rollercoaster..." Tobias mutters, as Matthew was trembling.

Then, they noticed that the walls were stretching upward, or more accurately, the floor was slowly dropping.

"Oh my, it seems the room itself is stretching!" The announcer declares, as Lavina yawns. "Quick, get into the door before the room decides to contract instead!"

The floor stopped lowering, as a door opened in front of them. They walk into a line, and see the large, coffin-like cars.

"My bedroom is spookier than this..." Lavina mutters under her breath, as they walk through the line until they're eventually able to get into the cars.

"Everyone, get ready!" The announcer shouts, as the cars began to move at a decent pace into the actual ride.

"Huh, this actually isn't so bad." Tobias remarks, as they moved past a mess of graves that read names like 'Sara Price', 'Jasper Aceron' and 'Rikyu Utsumi'. "Huh, those are not really generic victorian names."

"I bet they're made of plastic." Lavina groans, crossing her arms.

Then, the cars descended, and slightly rushed into what was essentially a ballroom, where a number of what looked like ghosts were waltzing with each other. Those these ghosts were not wearing dresses and suits, but rather just regular, 21st century clothing.

"Oh dear, was their budget blown?" Mason wonders, as they kept going, the cars attaching to a top rail before leaving the bottom one behind.

They were now moving over what looked like a large swimming pool of blood, with what looked like skeletons and broken coffins inside, said skeletons wearing the same clothes as the ghosts in the previous room.

And then, the cars stopped.

"Oh, no!" The announcer shouts. "It looks like we're experiencing some technical difficulties. I suppose you'll have to stay in the Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors a bit longer, now!"

"That was out-of-character." Tobias retorts, not caring that the announcer most likely could not hear them.

"I'm not spending an hour in this slog!" Lavina shouts, taking out her want and pointing it at each of the cars to make them start moving again.

"No! You weren--" The announcer starts, before cutting himself off and chuckling nervously. "I-I mean...it's a miracle we got the ride fixed so fast!"

They keep moving, now over a bed of spikes, where more skeletons and coffins could be seen.

"...U-uh...Vee...?" Matthew asks, as Lavina turns toward him with a smirk.

"Did you just call me 'Vee'?" She says a bit playfully, Matthew beginning to blush again before the rides once more stopped.

"U-u-uhhhh..." Matthew explains. "...I...I THINK THE RIDE WANTS TO KILL US!!!!!"

Right then, the coffins all decoupled from the track, and were falling towards the spike pit below!

"Finally, something exciting!" Lavina roars, creating a forcefield for them all to land on.

"Oh dear, I think we may have suffered more technical difficulties!" The announcer says. "Just remain where you are and we'll pick you up as soon as we can!"

"I suppose we just wait." Mason instructs. "Though I will be filing a complaint once we return home."

"*If* we return home..." Matthew whimpers, staying close to Lavina.

Then, a group of people wearing actual maintenance suits walked in.

"Follow us." They order. "We'll sort out the problems tomorrow, but for now the ride is out-of-order."

As they walk out of the ride, they see Blim Blam the Clown standing at the entrance, grinning at them all as Matthew hid behind Lavina again.

"You should really thuroughly check rides before saying they're in order." Mason says to Blim Blam, as they walk off.

"Yes..." Blim Blam near-growls, his eyes filled with rage despite his massive grin. "...we should."

After a long day of rides, it was night time, and everyone was getting ready to get back on the bus.

"I've gotta say, this day has been really exciting!" Lavina shouts. "Too bad they decided to make a fake haunted house.

"I'm...still not sure it was fake..." Matthew replies, as Mason seemed to be writing something in a book.

"Well, I had fun!" Nayla yells. "Now, there's only the Clown Coaster left!"

"I am not. Going. On the Clown Coaster." Tobias retorts. "Ever."

"Suit yourself." Hesso responds. "Though I've gotta say...I did sense a ghostly presence in that Haunted House ride."

"Wonderful, so this park kills tourists to create more attractions?" Tobias one-third-jokes. "Just...*wonderful*."

They stopped in front of the Clown Coaster, which composed of one extremely tall arc followed by seven initially large but increasingly small loops.

"Why, hello there to everyone!" Blim Blam welcomes, honking a clown horn in his hand. "Welcome to the Clown Coaster!"

"This ride has been checked, right?" Mason asks.

"Oh, yes..." Blim Blam answers. "...yes, it has."

"Good." Mason replies. "I don't wish to encounter any more...technical difficulties."

Mason walks past Blim Blam, side-eyeing and simultaneously narrowing his eyes at the clown, before getting into one of the cars, a scared Matthew and excited Lavina, Hesso, Nayla and others following suit.

"And what about you, boy?" Blim Blam asks, honking the clown horn again.

"I will actually kill you if you try to make me ride that thing." Tobias retorts. "I am fully dead serious when I say that."

"Better watch your tongue." Blim Blam sneers. "I could report that to the police, you know."

"And I could report you to Osha." Tobias counters. "So we're even."

Tobias walks away, Blim Blam's eyes now filled with murderous rage, though the clown kept the exact same smile that he had had this entire time.

The cars began to head up the arc, Tobias sitting on a bench and eating cotton candy as he watched them.

"This is, uh...this is really high..." Matthew notices. "...I-I'm...starting to have second thoughts about this..."

"This is rather high for a roller coaster..." Mason remarks. "...though, I have been through worse drops in my life."

"...Something isn't right..." Hesso says. "...not so much about the Clown Coaster, but this place in general...I think Tobias may have been onto something with that theory earlier..."

Tobias kept eating the cotton candy, when he noticed something. The peculiar shape of the Clown Coaster.

"...Wait a minute..." He mutters. "...A massively tall drop...followed by seven increasingly smaller loop-da-loops...oh, no...that's...THAT'S A EUTHANASIA COASTER!!!"

Then, the car reached the top of the arc, nearing the drop.

"Dammit!" Tobias shouts, tossing the cotton candy aside and running towards the controls of the Clown Coaster, where Bim Bam was about to press a big red button.

"Heeheeheeheeho!" Bim Bam laughs, moving his finger towards the button.

"Get out of my way!" Tobias roars, ramming into Bim Bam elbow-first to knock him back and turn off the Clown Coaster.

"What are you doing?!" Bim Bam demands, *still* smiling despite the sheer fury in his eyes. "You're ruining their fun!"

"No, I'm saving their damn lives!" Tobias yells, punching Bim Bam in the face to knock him out before pulling out the big red button, sping included. "Everyone, wait there! I'm calling the pol--AGH!!!"

Tobias had been knocked into the controls by Bim Bam, who lifted his head up with the sound of bones cracking to reveal that his grin was now full of sharp teeth, and blood was coming out of his mouth! Then, eight white spider legs burst from his back, and he giggled cruelly, his pupils dilating.

"...A demon...agh...great..." Tobias groans, narrowly dodging being stabbed by a spider leg.

"Your friends will feed me!" Bim Bam snarls, before getting on the side of Clown Coaster to climb towards the others.

Matthew screamed as Lavina trembled, as Hesso looked on in slight surprise at Blim Blam before regaining his composure.

"You shall feed me, humans!" Blim Blam says gleefully.

"No, we won't!" Nayla shouts, before punching Blim Blam in the face to send him crashing back down. "Lavina, help me get everyone down!"

Lavina nods shakily, as Nayla *flew* over to get cable to start tieing the cars together!

"Wh-wha?!" Matthew yelps, before he sees Blim Blam climbing back up the Clown Coaster and curls into a fetal position in fear.

Lavina was trying to concentrate on further linking the cars together while Nayla began to lift them by the front, as Blim Blam drew closer.

"What's wrong, Matthew?" Mason asks. "He's just a clown, remind him his real purpose."

Nayla had managed to lift the cars off the tracks, right as Blim Blam appeared on top of Mason's car! Mason quickly stabs Blim Blam in the eye with his pen while unbuckling himself, and dodges multiple stabs from spider legs, as Matthew clinged to Lavina, shaking and crying.

"The moment we get down from here, I'm turning you into a frog!" Lavina shouts, still trying to concentrate on the cars as she heard Mason still struggling against Blim Blam.

"I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die..." Matthew whimpers.

"You are stronger than you know, Matthew!" Nayla yells.

"Fear comes in two forms, Mr. Turner, fight and flight!" Mason explains while still holding off Blim Blam. "For the love of all of us, choose to *fight*!"

"Please, Matt!" Lavina says. "I believe in you!"

Matthew grits his teeth, closing his eyes tight, and for a moment, it seemed it all had fallen on deaf ears.

But then, he hears Mason yell in pain, and in a fit of hysterical strength, Matthew pulls the seatbelt out of the car and roars in fear and anger, leaping at Blim Blam to swing the seat belt at his face like a whip!

"GAH!!!" Blim Blam howls, before trying to stab Matthew with his spider legs, Matthew narrowly dodging as he swings the belt at one of the legs the clown was using to stand. "NO!!!"

Then, Matthew swings the seat belt at Blim Blam's torso, causing him to stumble, and fall off Mason's car to the ground below, before Nayla sets the cars down on the ground.

As they all got out of the cars, they saw Blim Blam standing back, up, now snarling at them with his grin having become a grimace.

"I WILL GUT YOU ALL ALIVE!!!!!" The clown shrieks, rushing at them, before he was suddenly shot from behind by the same maintenance crew from the Haunted House of Harrowing Horrors. "GAH!!!!!!"

"Shoulda' known our mascot was a freak!" One of the men shouts, as Blim Blam, unaffected by the wounds, turns towards them to leap at them...but is stopped in mid-air by rings of golden energy.

"Foul demon..." Hesso starts. "For your crimes against humanity, you shall be punished! Accept your fate and allow yourself to be sealed!"

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Blim Blam screams, before he and the rings are converted into streams of golden energy, which flow into Hesso's staff.

"...Well...that was...something..." One of Lavina's friends remarks, before passing out from both fright and exhaustion.

"Argh..." Tobias groans, limping towards them as he held his chest in pain.

"You saved us!" Nayla shouts, going to hug him.

"Don't touch me right now." Tobias retorts. "I need that...healing magic Lavina apparently has."

"I would say this has been a wonderful Saturday." Mason says. "Despite the...demonic mishaps."

"All those people..." Matthew breathes.

"They'll be able to move on, now." Hesso replies, putting a hand on Matthew's shoulder. "Now that they've been rid of their captor."

"Well, err...didn't expect all this." Another of the maintenance crew remarks as he scratches his head. "Think we'll all go, uhh, work at another amusement park. Less evil one, this time."

"You were so cool back there, Vee!" Matthew shouts. "How did you stay so calm?"

"To be honest." Lavina answers. "I face my fear of spiders a long time ago. Doesn't mean I wouldn't still rather not be around them."

"Yeah..." Matthew replies. "...same with me and clowns now, I think..."

They then all walk into the bus, still not fully knowing how to describe the day.

## Chapter 5 - Road Rage

The moon shone overhead, casting its cool blue light on the hundreds of trees that surrounded, on either side, the highway to Westvalley. The bus drove through this highway, holding all of the students and teachers who had just been through the ordeal of Dreamworld.

"You were awesome at that park, Matt!" Lavina says, sitting next to him as he sat in the back next to a window.

"Th-thank you..." Matthew replies with a small chuckle, blushing.

"I can't wait to share this story with the Principal..." Mason remarks. "There's so much to talk about."

"All those rides were fun!" Nayla chimes in with a grin, as Tobias was eating cotton candy he had brought back from the amusement park.

Unbeknownst to all of them, a somewhat dreary-looking car was following the bus from behind.

"How many vaguely supernatural things are inside that staff?" Tobias asks. "I've become genuinely curious."

"Oh, about a couple thousand." Hesso answers. "With room for who knows how many more."

"Hesso is the best!" Nayla shouts. "He's so amazing!"

"Yes, he sure is." Tobias replies. "Just be sure to lower the volume, since some people are probably trying to sleep."

"Sorry." Nayla apologizes.

Matthew kept looking out the window, watching cars and trees pass by and listening to the low hum of the bus, as his eyelids began to droop.

"Feeling sleepy?" Lavina asks.

"Oh..." Matthew replies. "...I...guess I am..."

"I understand." She says with a chuckle. "That was a pretty crazy park, in...a couple of senses."

"Yeah..." Matthew responds with a whisper, feeling himself beginning to drift off to sleep.

"Oh, it seems we just passed onto Warren Grove Whiting Road." Mason remarks. "I've heard a family crashed somewhere on said road."

"Can you not say anything about the history of a thing for five seconds?" Tobias demands. "Every time you do that, some ghost related to that shows up to attack us."

"Ah right, sorry." Mason replies.

The car from before had gotten much closer to the bus, and waits for the truck currently passing by the bus to do so before driving next to the bus itself.

"Anyone wanna hear a funny story?" The bus driver asks. "I actually used to drive a bus down in Orlando, Flori-WOAH!!!"

The bus had suddenly been rammed, waking and interrupting everyone!

"Wh-wha?!" Matthew yelps, jolting awake and realizing he had fallen asleep on Lavina's lap, his face going red during said realization.

"Ghost car!" Lavina shouts. "I'll get my wand!"

"Damn drunk!" The bus driver groans. "They're on the wrong side of the road! ARGH!!!"

The bus had been rammed again, causing anyone who didn't grab onto a metal pole to stumble and fall. The car that was doing so quickly drove in front of the bus to avoid a sedan, and stayed in front of the bus.

"All of this is uncalled for..." Mason remarks, holding his head in pain as he looks down at a book he had been reading.

The bus driver glares at the car, before noticing a window in the car's hood opening...allowing for a man clad in combat armor and a fully-covering facemask to rise out and point a military-grade rifle at the driver!

"Pull over!" The soldier orders.

The bus driver, realizing the situation, quickly rams the bus into the back of the car to cause it to spin away.

"Woah!" Hesso shouts. "What was that?!"

"It's not a ghost, and it's not a drunk!" The bus driver explains. "It's a soldier."

Nobody spoke for a moment, everyone was dead silent as they heard the bus driver's words.

"It's a civilian vehicle, sir." The pilot of a helicopter flying above and behind the bus says.

"Immobilize them." A voice beside the pilot instructs.

The bus driver keeps ramming the soldier's car away, as more of the same model of car surround the bus on every side they could, soldiers rising out the hoods of each to point their rifles at the bus' tires and fire!

"Shit, shit, shit!" The bus driver roars, trying to swerve around to avoid the bullets and bump more of the soldiers' cars off the road. Everyone ducked to the ground as bullets flew through the bus, shattering windows and lights and riddling the walls and doors with holes. One tire popped, then another, then another, and then another. The bus driver took out a can of pepper spray, but was unable to even try to use it before a bullet flew through his head, killing him instantly.

Before anyone could even register what just happened, all remaining tires were popped, and the four cars pressed up against the bus to begin ceasing its movement, grinding it to a screeching halt. And then, the gunfire stopped.

Everyone began to get up from the floor, having small cuts and bruises from shattered glass and being slammed against parts of the bus. It was then that the doors were forced open, and the four soldiers entered the bus, pointing their rifles at Nayla, who's eyes widened in horror.

"Nobody move!" One of the soldiers shouts. "The girl is being taken into our custody, all resistance will be met with retaliation!"

Everyone stood still, shocked and terrified as the lights flickered. Then, Lavina creates a forcefield as fast as she possibly can, the soldiers immediately firing at it as Nayla punches out one of the bus' walls!

"Everyone, out!" Mason orders, as they all leave the bus right when they hear bullets strike metal behind them.

"My barrier..." Lavina breathes. "...it barely held up..."

The soldiers ran towards the back of the bus, as everyone who survived the initial attack hid behind the soldiers' own cars to avoid the gunfire.

"Hello, Police?" Mason asks. "This is Mason Snow, teacher at Westvalley High. We're under attack from men wearing military-grade armor and using military-grade rifles!"

Hesso and Matthew hear vehicles approaching, and suddenly realize something important.

"We can't let them get near here!" Matthew shouts. "We can't let anyone else get caught up in this!"

"I'll take this lane!" Hesso shouts back. "You take the other lane!"

Matthew nods and runs to the other side of the rode, waving his arms through the air, as Hesso stayed on the side of the road the bus was on and raised his staff into the air, making it glow.

"Do not approacha any further!" Hesso shouts. "We are currently dealing with terrorists!"

"Don't come any closer!" Matthew roars at the top of his lungs. "There are people trying to kill us over here!"

Most of the vehicles went around the scene of the attack or just turned back, but one car was still rushing forwards, rushing at Matthew.

"Hey, you have to stop!" Matthew yells. "Can't you see-WOAH!!!!!"

Matthew had barely managed to leap out of the way of getting run over, as the car turns around and, in the light of the bullets, was revealed to be old, red and rusted with its entire front crumpled and crushed!

"The...th-the Ghost Car!" Matthew realizes, leaping to the lane the bus was on as the Ghost Car follows, screaming in the collective anguished voices of the family who had once driven it.

"A civilian attacking another?" The man in the helicopter demands, watching this all unfold.

Matthew kept running from the Ghost Car, which Hesso noticed first, and then everyone else. The soldiers fire at it, popping its tires, as Hesso leaps over it to stay with the others.

"This is bad..." Mason groans. "...we can't escape them both..."

The soldiers once again point their rifles at Nayla...before they notice the Ghost Car flying through the air! It screeches again, before raming into the soldiers, crushing them all under its weight!

"Definitely not a civilian." The pilot remarks, as the man next to him reaches his hand towards a rocket launcher in the back of the helicopter.

The Ghost Car goes to ram into Matthew again, but Lavina manages to create another forcefield to block the ramming. It rams again, breaking right through, but is caught by Nayla.

"What did we do to anger you?!" Nayla asks pleadingly.

"IF WE CANNOT SURVIVE THIS ROAD, THEN NO ONE CAN!!!" The Ghost Car screams in response. "NO ONE WILL BE ALLOWED TO GO ON THIS HIGHWAY WHEN WE CAN NOTICE THEM!!!"

"Please, Angry Spirits!" Hesso replies. "All of this violence and bloodshed is needless! We beg for your forgiveness and mercy, and hope only to make things right with you!"

"AND HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY DO *THAT*?!" The Ghost Car shrieks.

"I can send you to the Afterlife, if you will allow me!" Hesso explains. "Please, allow yourselves peace at long last!"

The Ghost Car is silent for a moment, everyone on the ground sweating, before it lowers itself onto the road.

"Give us peace." The Ghost Car pleaded.

Hesso nods, and grips his staff with both hands before tapping it on the ground, creating a circle of golden energy around the Ghost Car. The spirits of the family, a father, mother, son and daughter, rise out of their old car, smiling at Hesso, who smiles back, before the golden circle surrounds the ghosts, and they all dissipate into glowing golden dust, which then vanishes.

Everyone breathes a sigh of relief...right when the car is destroyed by a rocket!

Everyone is sent back by the explosion except for Nayla, who turns up at the helicopter, seeing the man who had fired the rocket.

Dalton Combs was a well-built and muscular man, who wore the same armor as his soldiers, but without a helmet. His jaw and chin were large, his lips were thin, his eyes were brown and his hair was an almost-white blonde. His face was chiseled and weathered, as well as covered in battle scars. The expression he gave them all was one of cold indifference, as he was illuminated by the moon above him, the fire below him, and the computer beside him.

"MIST still has home-field advantage, Visitor." Dalton says to Nayla. "We will learn all there is to know about your biology, even if that means cutting you open, and seeing what makes you tick."

The helicopter aims a machine gun down at them, before they hear police sirens in the distance.

"Sir?" The pilot asks.

"...Retreat." Dalton orders into a communicator, before the helicopter flies off, and the cars follow.

"...Never tell us the history of a place we're in again." Tobias says.

"No promises." Mason replies.

They all turn to see the police arrive, as Dorsey gets out of his own police car.

"I'm guessing this is the sight of that terrorist attack?" Dorsey asks.

"Indeed." Mason answers. "And we were coming back from a demonic carnival at that."

"...Dealing with so many ghosts and demons may have caused us to forget something..." Dorsey remarks. "...the most dangerous monsters of all...are often human."

## Chapter 6 - Pandemonium at the Pizza Place!

Matthew, Lavina, Tobias, Hesso and Nayla were all at Lexa's Pizza, waiting for the meals they had ordered. Within the dining part of the restaurant, they could already smell pizza from everywhere, and had noticed a seemingly newly-built stage near the entrance.

"You okay, Nayla?" Hesso asks, putting his hand comfortingly on Nayla's shoulder.

"...I don't know..." She replies a bit weakly. "...Those people, they...I think they want me for some reason..."

"I think they called themselves 'Mist'." Tobias adds in. "Considering that they fled, I don't think they'll actually come into Westvalley itself. But I could be wrong."

"I hope not..." Matthew replies.

"They'd better not!" Lavina butts in. "Or I'll turn them all into frogs!"

"Why didn't you do that the first time?" Tobias demands.

"...Uh..." Lavina trails off.

"Pizza's here!" A brown-haired, brown-eyed young woman in a red t-shirt and black cap, apron and jeans declares, walking over to them and setting down slices of the various pizzas they ordered. A regular pepperoni pizza for Matthew, a meat lover's pizza for Lavina, an anchovy pizza for Tobias, a plain cheese pizza for Hesso, and a stuffed pizza for Nayla.

"Yes!" Lavina shouts, beginning to devour the pizza, while Nayla ate a bit more slowly.

"I know I can always count on you guys to enjoy my food, and It's nice to see some new faces around here." The woman, Lexa, says. "Say, what were you all talking about?"

"We were attacked by terrorists after coming back from a haunted theme park." Tobias explains. "I'm not gonna' sugarcoat it."

"...Well...that sounds exciting." Lexa replies a bit nervously. "Anyways, I think the new assets are here."

"New assets?" Hesso asks.

"Yep!" Lexa answers, walking over to the back door as Hesso and Matthew follow.

Directly outside was a truck, which was being opened to reveal a number of animal-like creatures inside.

"I got offered these robots for free by some manufacturer called Kaur Robotics, and they seem pretty legit." Lexa explains to them. "They should lighten up the mood, don't ya' think?"

"They look a little...offputting." Hesso remarks. "What did Kaur themselves say about them?"

"They're apparently prototypes." Lexa responds. "I was given them as a test run apparently, and the company itself apparently makes a lot of mainline stuff anyway, so they don't seem like scammers or anything."

"Is that what the stage is for?" Matthew asks.

"Well, that and for that rock band that's passing through tomorrow." Lexa answers. "I heard they're holding auditions."

"Huh, alright then." Matthew replies.

"We'd better get back before our pizza gets cold." Hesso says. "It was nice meeting you, uh..."

"Lexa." Lexa answers. "I own this pizza place."

"Right!" Hesso replies, as he and Matthew walk back.

Huxley walks into the pizza place, placing a used cigar into a pocket as he looks around.

"New stage, huh?" He remarks, seeing Lexa standing atop said stage with various animatronics all gathered around her, microphone in hand.

"I'm so glad you all could be here, today!" Lexa shouts into the microphone. "For a few years now, my Pizza Place has been able to give you all delicious dinners and scrumptious lunches, and now we are glad to announce our latest addition in entertainment! Given to us by Kaur Robotics, meet the Animatronics! We've got Dairy the Cow, Whitley the Wheat, Tom the Tomato, and Porky the Pig, with plenty more on the way to represent all our delicious ingredients!"

The animatronics wave, as plenty of people waved back, plenty others a bit unnerved.

"This ought'a be good." Huxley mutters, sitting down and looking at a menu.

"We thank Kaur Robotics from the bottom of our hearts for these new companions!" Lexa continues with a smile. "And we hope you will come to value them as friends as much as we have!"

"Something seems fishy about them..." Tobias remarks. "...and I can promise that has nothing to do with a potential Anchovy Robot."

The five were all in the park after having finished their pizza, as Nayla was happily playing Frisbee with herself.

"So we all agree that the robots are probably haunted, right?" Tobias asks.

"What makes you say that?" Matthew asks back.

"Are you saying you weren't freaked out by those things?" Tobias demands. "They look like every generic scary robot ever."

"Well, they were pretty creepy..." Hesso remarks. "...but I didn't sense any spirits within them."

"Shut up about your spirit sense." Tobias retorts, Hesso flinching back a bit. "We need to keep an eye on those robots, and make sure they don't kill anyone. Otherwise Lexa would be sued or killed."

"Hey, Hesso's spirit sense has been reliable in the past!" Lavina shouts.

"Like when?" Tobias replies coldly. "When he figured out about Bim Bam being a demon? Oh wait, *I'm* the one who figured that out! *I'm* the one who *saved* your asses!"

"What's your problem?!" Matthew demands. "We just want to be friends with you but you keep being a total jerk!"

"Please stop fighting!" Nayla shouts, butting into the conversation, they all turn to see her, as she still looked stressed about last night. "I trust Hesso, but I also trust Toby! Something weird is going on that we have to figure out, but please stop fighting!"

"...Alright, sorry..." Tobias mutters.

"Sorry." Matthew responds, before he sat back down, tapping his feet together.

"I hope it's ghosts." Lavina remarks. "But I also hope they don't hurt anyone."

Huxley picks the lock to the front door with his pocket knife, walking into Lexa's Pizza with a flashlight in his other hand. He carefully watches the room, looking for any suspicious activity, quite conscious of every floorboard creak, and of his very own breath, both of which he tried to make as quiet as he could.

There! Movement!

Huxley, with a small smirk on his face, walks after where he saw the movement, his eyes darting around to try and catch sight of the figure again. He notices movement again, and turns towards it, the flashlight illuminating the wall, though nothing else was at that spot. He exhales sharply, beginning to slowly back up as his eyes dart around again.

Then, without warning, he bumps into something behind him!

He slowly but surely turns around, seeing Dairy the Cow standing there.

"...Yo..." Huxley quips hesitantly, a drop of sweat running down his face.

"YOU!!!!!" Dairy screams, lunging at Huxley as its mouth opened to reveal a human-like set of teeth!

"Woah!" Huxley yelps, kicking Dairy into the wall before leaping back himself. Dairy quickly recovers, shrieking in what sounded like a mix between anguish and agony, then leaping at Huxley again.

Huxley manages to dodge its next attack, taking out his gun to shoot at Dairy's center of mass. The bullet goes through the cloth and foam, but stops at the metal exoskeleton inside, as Dairy turns around to swing its arm at the detective. Huxley takes a step back and shoots out one of Dairy's eyes, sparks flying from the now-exposed socket. Dairy screams again, and once more lunges at Huxley, Huxley leaping to the side to avoid the attack, but finding himself bouncing off of Tom the Tomato!

"Gh!" Huxley grunts, as he sees Tom, Whitley and Porky, all of them baring their human-like teeth at him before they all attempt an attack.

Huxley leaps onto Tom, then leaping off of him and shooting at the eyes of all the animatronics. His gun clicks mid-flight, and he lands on the ground with a grunt of pain, seeing the animatronics slowly shambling towards him, growling as sparks flickered from their eyes and ever-so-briefly illuminated the dark room and hallway.

"Shit!" Huxley shouts, running further down the hallway, holstering his gun and taking out his phone. "Need a little backup, here! I'm at Lexa's and the new robots are going haywire!"

Huxley reaches the end of the hallway, gets behind a corner, and reloads his gun, intent on firing through the animatronics' batteries. He sighs for a moment, before leaping out from behind the corner to fire at the animatronics' centers. Whitley the Wheat seemed to shut off for a moment, but then turned back on, the four continuing to shamble towards Huxley.

"JOIN US!!!!!" They howl in unison. "JOIN US IN SUFFERING!!!!!"

"Like Hell, I will!" Huxley retorts, taking out a taser and running towards Porky the Pig.

He jams the taser into the animatronic and turns it on, aiming to short-circuit it. Though this seemed to work for a moment, Porky was quick to recover, and tried to grab at Huxley's arm. He leaps back and pockets the taser, taking out his gun again to keep firing at them. They kept coming, no matter where or what he shot, they kept coming. He took a few more steps back, before feeling his back hit the wall behind him. He grits his teeth a bit, and turns back towards the animatronics, as they came closer...closer...closer...

Suddenly, a purple shield forms between Huxley and the animatronics!

"You need a little help?" Hesso asks from behind the animatronics, Lavina holding her wand out to keep casting the spell as Matthew took out a sword he clearly made from spare parts.

The animatronics turn towards them and, shrieking like demons, leap at them. Matthew manages to slash Dairy open, oil and sparks spraying out at him, though his armor and welding mask protected him. Tom rolls towards Matthew, but he blocks the roll with his sword before stabbing into the giant tomato, blood-red oil spraying out much to the horror of Nayla. Tobias was dodging strikes from Whitley before he grabbed one of its arms and shoved that into an electrical socket. Whitley screamed in pain, but soon recovered.

"...Definitely ghosts." Tobias remarks, before leaping back from Whitley's next strike.

"Angry Spirits!" Hesso shouts, raising his staff into the air. "What is it we did to harm you?!"

"BLOOD!!!!!" Porky screams maniacally, lunging at Hesso.

Nayla is quick to act, punching Porky with enough strength to blast it apart, reducing it for the most part to individual pieces and oil. And this time, Porky stayed down. Whitley tries to attack them from behind, but Lavina turns around and points her wand at its face.

"Tignum!" She shouts, blasting a beam of magic through Whitley's face.

The animatronic screams again, sparking more heavily, but stayed up. That was, until Matthew sliced in half. It tried to craw towards Lavina, but Matthew stabbed it in its battery, making it go limp.

"...Well...huh." Huxley remarks.

"I don't get it..." Hesso breathes. "...I am sensing no additional souls around here...these things are not housing spirits..."

"...Why would they?" Tobias replies. "They're robots, through and through."

Later that night, Lexa had woken up and came down to see the carnage for herself.

"...Oh, my..." She whispers, putting her hands on her mouth, her eyes wide in shock.

"This is why you don't accept creepy robot deals from mysterious corporations." Tobias says, kicking Dairy's head.

"Who would build something like this?" Lavina wonders. "Not even a scammer, probably. Maybe they were hacked?"

"Couldn't've been." Huxley responds, looking at the mess. "They were clearly built to be really damn tough to break. They were *built* to kill customers."

"...I'll tell my supplier about this immediately." Lexa replies. "And cancel the order."

"They figured out about the animatronics too soon." A red-haired, blue-eyed woman wearing golden glasses and a black business suit with a red tie said, walking into a large, circular, fancy room with tall windows overlooking the bright blue moon beginning to set over the ocean. A man sat in a chair, turned away from the door, as he seemed to be sipping tea, listening to the woman's report.

"There must be someone else in that town..." The man remarks in a British-sounding accent, twirling his black mustache.

"The damage has been reported to the authorities." The woman continues. "They'll no-doubt file a lawsuit against Kaur Robotics."

"I can handle that by pinning it on the direct manufacturers..." Kaur remarks, turning around to reveal his short and neat black hair, along with his dark blue eyes and pale beige skin, along with his fancy red and very-dark blue suit with yellow linings, a green bowtie, and golden buttons and buckles on black leather belts, shoes and gloves.

"...as for me, I believe I should head on to Westvalley in person."

## Chapter 7 - Battle of the Bands!

"Alright, Adamant Airwaves is now in town!" A young woman with long red hair and bright orange eyes declared. She wore a slightly torn-up leather outfit, consisting of a biker's jacket and jeans, the jacket missing a sleeve. As she shouted her announcement into the microphone, many people cheered, Lavina chief among them. "Wow..." Matthew breathes, as Hesso just looks on with curiosity. Nayla seemed excited as well, though not to the extent of Lavina. "Let's hope nothing bad comes of this..." Tobias remarks, before seeing Lavina side-eye him. He quietly grunts in annoyance under his breath, before walking away, as Hesso had noticed and looked a bit concerned.

"Tonight, we're gonna be competing with March of Daydreams! So ready this town and buckle up for the ride!" The woman continues, being cheered on more by the crowd. Then, she noticed Lavina, and leaped off the stage to hug her. "Lavina! It's so good to see you again!" "It's great to see you too, Bianca!" Lavina replies, hugging back as well. "Hi." Matthew says after a moment. "Oh, hello!" Bianca responds, looking on at Matthew for a bit. "You just make more and more friends, don't ya? Who're you?" "I'm, uh, Matthew." Matthew answered a bit nervously. "It's nice to meet you, Bianca." "Oh, and I'm Hesso." Hesso says, joining in on the conversation. "There's a pizza place in town if we wanna all get to know each other more."

"Lexa's, right?" Bianca responds. "Are you her boyfriend?" "Eh, we're friends but we're not that close." Hesso replies. "We did help her with an animatronic problem, though." "Hi, new friend!" Nayla shouts, tackling and hugging Bianca. "Oof! Well...hello...there!" She manages, struggling to breathe. "Oh! Sorry!" Nayla yelps, letting go of Bianca. "I'm Nayla." "Bianca." Bianca responds with a bit of a chuckle. "I'll introduce you guys to the rest of the band soon enough." Hesso looked up at said band. A young man wearing a leather jacked and jeans, with a copper flower necklace and a bit of a drooping mohawk, standing at the drums. A young woman with olive skin and short blonde hair, along with greenish-brown eyes, wearing something of a jumpsuit and holding a guitar, and a short figure with dark blue hair and big blue eyes, wearing a black coat and scarf that covered their entire body except their eyes and some of their hair.

"Say, is Matt here your boyfriend?" Bianca asks Lavina. Matthew blushed intensely, while Lavina put her hand on her chin and looked at him with a small smirk. "U-uh...w-we're just friends..." Matthew stammers, Bianca soon smirking as well. "Will he be any different from the other guys before?" She ponders. "Ah, whatever, I'll stop teasing you two for now! I wanna see what's changed since I was last here! Remember, everyone! Be at the clock tower at midnight!" The crowd cheers once again, as everyone began to walk to the tram station.

Matthew was helping Tanner repair a few broken-down streetlights, while a tram battery laid on a rolling table beside them.

"New bulb, please." Tanner requests, holding out his hand as Matthew handed him the bulb. "Thanks, I'm glad to know I can count on you." "Right!" Matthew replies, before taking a look at the battery. It seemed like it would need to be replaced for the tram to work properly again. "With skill like what you've got, you'll be a great mechanic someday." Tanner remarks, screwing in the new light bulb. "Really?!" Matthew shouts. "Yep." Tanner says. "Got a knack for machines that I haven't seen often, and a passion for 'em, too. Who knows what you might be able to repair, or make?" "Heh, yeah, who knows?" Matthew replies with a nervous chuckle. Tanner closes the street light, and lowers the bucket truck, before turning towards the battery. "Figure out the problem?" He asks. "Yes, Sir!" Matthew answers quickly.

Lavina was currently trying to turn a frog into a kettle, as an extremely elderly woman, her body covered in wrinkles and warts, her clothing matching that of a traditional witch, watched. "Alright...focus on the frog...turn it to a kettle...turn it back..." Lavina muttered to herself, before pointing at the frog, the frog briefly turning metal before suddenly switching back before the transfiguration could even fully start. "Dammit!" "Don't beat yourself up, Lavina." The witch, Agatha, said in a warm manner. "Transmutation, especially from organic to inorganic, is quite a difficult spell, and you've certainly been making progress faster than most of my other students." "Thanks for that." Lavina replies. "I just don't get how I can't do this yet..." "Magic is a skill like any other." Agatha says calmly. "It takes time and practice to master." Lavina nods, before hearing her phone buzz and taking it out of her pocket.

Matthew had been working on a device for a while, but got sidetracked with a drawing of Lavina he had made. He had finished that drawing, and was about to make the finishing touches on the device, when he heard someone enter the garage he was in, and turned to see Hesso. "Oh! Hesso!" Matthew yelps. "Didn't think you'd stop by." "Quite a lot of stuff here, I see." Hesso replies, looking around. "This is where you built your suit, right?" "Yeah, it is." Matthew confirms, before he notices that Hesso had noticed the drawing. "Heh, maybe you should show her that." He says in a joking manner, Matthew blushing. "U-uh...I'm...not sure she'll like it..." He mutters. "Have you seen her fashion sense?" Hesso asks. "She'll love this. Besides, I thought it was pretty obvious she's into you."

"Right..." Matthew murmurs. "...what if she's just leading me along? I guess that's my biggest worry about all this..." "Right, can never be too careful I guess." Hesso responds. "Though I've seen others like her before, and she doesn't seem to have that quality that they did, at least outwardly, no matter how much they tried to hide it." "Huh..." Matthew remarks. "Oh, what's that you're building?" Hesso asks, pointing at the device. "Uh, it's supposed to be able to touch ghosts." Matthew answers, a bit less nervous than he just was. "Hmm, maybe I can help." Hesso offers, walking up to the device. "I might know a way to get this to work, especially if you give me the rundown on how it's supposed to work." "Thanks." Matthew replies. "Alright, so first..."

"And this is where I like to hang out with my friends!" Lavina declares, leading Bianca into a communal room in the school, where Nayla, a young woman with long blonde hair, and a young woman with dark skin, black makeup and shoulder-length black hair sat. "Hey, Hollie! Hey, Kelsey!" "Oh, hey Lavina!" Kelsey shouts back, before the three of them notice Bianca. "Oh, it's you!" Nayla roars, tackling Bianca to hug her. "New friend!" "Woah! Nice to see you again." Bianca replies with a bit of a groan of pain. Nayla stops hugging when she hears it, as Bianca stands up and turns towards Hollie and Kelsey. "I'm Bianca, Band Leader of Adamant Airwaves!" "Nice to meet you, Bianca." Hollie replies. "Where's the rest of the band, though?" "They're looking for a stage." Bianca explains. "They'll call me when they find one."

"Hmm...Lavina." Kelsey starts. "I've gotta know, what's your relationship with Matt?" "Oh!" Lavina shouts a bit. "Well, I think he's adorable, and I like his drive to get better with that suit, reminds me of my own practicing a bit. And he can also be awesome when he's brave!" "Heh, haven't asked him out yet?" Hollie asks. "I'm waiting for him to ask me out." Lavina answers. "He didn't do it the moment he saw me so he probably isn't like the other guys, so I'm waiting for him to build up the confidence he needs to be more proactive." "Wait, other guys?" Bianca asks, sounding a bit confused and even, maybe, a bit mad. "Yep." Lavina answers nonchalantly. "With how I look and act, every jerk I meet wants to get with me, if they're bad enough about it then I make sure they have no choice but to stop, non-lethally of course." "Huh." Bianca replies.

"Hello, everyone." Mason says, walking into the room. "Who're you?" Bianca asks him. "Mason Snow, the History Teacher." Mason answers calmly. "I heard you needed a place to play your music, so might I suggest the stage that March of Daydreams used to play?" "March of Daydreams?" Bianca demands. "Those guys who played all over the state?" "Yes." Mason states. "They died here in the Westvalley Fire, trying to play their last song even today. I find their music unbearable." "...So we get to play against ghosts?!" Bianca shouts. "AWESOME!!! I heard you were a Ghost Hunter, Lavina!" "Well, I sorta' am I guess." Lavina replies with a chuckle. "Matt, Nayla, Hesso and Toby are too." "I'll finally get to see a real ghost!" Bianca almost yells, grinning. "This is gonna be a song to remember!" "Don't get your hopes up." Tobias retorts, walking in behind Mason. "Every ghost we've encountered so far has tried their hardest to kill us."

The sun was setting behind the ocean, as a large portion of Westvalley's residents were gathered in a crowd at the front of a stage, on top of which stood Bianca and her band, Adamant Airwaves.

"Alright, you ready?!" She roars, as the crowd cheered. "I can't hear you!"

The crowd cheers louder.

"One more time!" She shouts, to which the crowd cheered even louder. "Alright, let's get this show started!"

And at that, the band started playing, beginning the song with an instrumental solo. Lavina was the most excited out of the people cheering, it seemed, while Matthew and Nayla were cheering a long with her, Hesso watching and listening with a smile while Tobias was nowhere to be seen.

"...Hey, Matt." Hesso whispers. "You brought the gadget with you just in case, right?" "Oh." Matthew whispers back. "Yep." "Good." Hesso replies. "I brought my staff." "Let's cheer them on, Hesso!" Nayla yells, as she had Hesso pump his fist up. "Woah! Alright." Hesso responds, beginning to cheer as well.

From atop a building, three figures wearing cloaks were looking down at Adamant Airwaves in seeming rage, all three of them being transparent to an extent. "This is the bitch who thinks she can beat our tune?" One of them grunts. "Let's show those fools there's only one band in town!"

The solo continued, though it sounded as though it was nearing its end. Everyone was cheering loudly for Bianca and the rest of Adamant Airwaves, as Bianca herself held her microphone to her mouth, about to start singing.

However, right when the solo ended, and right as she was going to sing, the power to the stage's special effects went out.

"Huh?!" Bianca demands, looking around. "Hey, Aaren, what-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Aaren, the blue-haired figure, had been sent flying to her feet. "Gh!" She grunts, as they all look on at where Aaren had been sent flying from. Slowly but surely, three figures walk out, all wearing cloaks. Then, two of them threw their cloaks off. The man in the middle had a spiky mohawk, a sleeveless jacket, tattered jeans, earrings, and spikes on a choker and four bracelets, his hand holding a microphone. The woman on the left held two drumstricks, her hair being short and uneven as she wore what seemed like a mix between a tracksuit and a bikersuit. The man on the right, however, had kept his cloak on, as it obscured his eyes but not his hair, which flowed down out of the hood. Not much could be seen beneath the cloak, except that he was holding a guitar.

But more importantly, they were all transparent, and all glowing. They were all ghosts.

"Wait..." Bianca remarks. "...you're March of Daydreams!" "Oh, so you heard of us?!" The man in the middle retorts. "Then you know this is the wrong place to play your music!" "Shove it, Mister...uh..." Bianca trails off. "Johnny!" the man roars. "Johnny May! This is Alice and Harper! We're the best band in town!" "Oh, so we're introducing ourselves?" Bianca asks. "I'm Bianca, that's Julia, that's Ethan, and the one you just beat up is Brett." "I-guh-grrrr..." Johnny growls. "Point is, you're getting out now!" "Make me." Bianca taunts with a smug look on her face. "By the way, are you threating me because you know you'd lose when it comes to songs?"

"THAT'S IT!!!!!" Johnny screams, unleashing a sonic blast at Bianca. "WHA--" Bianca barely has time to shout, before she is blasted off. Lavina manages to catch her, as Nayla looks on in shock. Harper is immediately upon Ethan, swinging his guitar down at him like an axe. Ethan yelps and dodges out of the way, before Julia tackles him out of the way of being stabbed by one of Alice's drumsticks. "Hey!" Matthew shouts, as he and Hesso ran to the front of the crowd, a crowd that was starting to flee. "What do you think you're doing?!" "Uh, keeping our status, duh!" Johnny yells with a laugh. "Well, then what's your unfinished business?!" Matthew continues. "People stay on the Earth as ghosts because of unfinished business, so what's yours?!"

"I think it's to play that last song they couldn't finish..." Lavina mutters. "...but frankly, I don't wanna help them. Not after they attacked my friends!" "And what are you gonna DO ABOUT IT?!?!?!?!" Johnny screams again, sending a sonic blast at Lavina. She points her wand at the blast to form a shield between it and her, before Harper swings his guitar at the shield to crack it. "Dammit!" Lavina shouts, leaping back right as the shield gives way and dissipates, as she had pulled Bianca back with her. "These guys are psychos..." Bianca groans, getting back up and holding her ears in pain. "...how did they ever get so popular, here?"

Ethan and Olive were sent off the stage as well, as Nayla and Matthew caught them. Then, Hesso walked up to the stage, and tapped his staff on the ground. "Angry Spirits, how might you be appeased?" He asks. "By getting Adamant Airwaves *off* the air!" Johnny retorts. "Shall we allow you to play your last song?" Hesso continues. "Dude, we've been playing it for decades by now." Alice retorts, readying herself to stab Hesso with her drumsticks. "Then what do you have left to accomplish?" Hesso demands. "Is it to simply play music for eternity?" "Well, yeah!" Johnny yells. "And we're not gonna let anyone else supplant us!"

"...That's dumb." Tobias says from behind them, as they all whirl around to glare at him, grimacing. "What the fuck did you say, you little shit?!" Johnny howls. "You heard me." Tobias retorts. "You're dead, you're already famous, and besides, you're dead, you have a legacy now, and you're screwing it up by attacking anyone who tries to play here, who tries to follow your example as a band and live up *to* your legacy. What's the point of being the best band around if you're the *only* band around?"

For a moment, Johnny doesn't answer, as Olive walks towards Tobias.

"We always *wanted* to be the only band around." She explains. "And now that we're ghosts, we don't have to worry about the law keeping us from getting our way!" Then, she goes to stab at Tobias...but the drumstick had been stopped by what seemed like a shield made from transparent green hexagons, a shield attached to a watch on Matthew's wrist. "Gh?!" She grunts, before Matthew bashes her back with the shield. "Argh! That...hurt?!" She demands, as Harper goes to swing his guitar at Matthew, who just uses the shield again, being sent sliding back a bit but keeping his ground. "...Get...out of our...WAY!!!!!!!!!!!" Johnny screams once more, unleashing a sonic blast at Matthew and Tobias that sent them flying towards the wall regardless of the shield. However, before either of them could hit it, Lavina caught Matthew and tackled Tobias out of the way.

"Ow...thanks..." Tobias groans, while Matthew was blushing hard. "You have to stop this, please!" Nayla pleads, having leaped onto the stage. "We don't have to fight! You can teach Adamant Airwaves what you know, and besides, they're only passing through! Please stop all this--" "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!" Johnny screams yet again, sending the sonic blast at Nayla, who crossed her arms to block it, not even being sent sliding back by it. Harper swung his guitar at her neck, but it snapped in half upon hitting her forearm, the same happening to Alice's chopsticks when she tried to stab Nayla in the eyes. "...WHAT THE ACTUALL LIVIN' HELL *ARE* YOU?!" Johnny screams one more time, putting all he could into it, and though Nayla grunted from the pain, she still didn't even budge.

"*That's enough*." Hesso says, tapping his staff on the stage as a golden ring surrounded March of Daydreams, Nayla leaping back. "Huh?!" Johnny demands, turning towards Hesso. "I can see now that there is no appeasing you, malevolent spirit." Hesso states. "And so, your reign of terror must now be put to an end." Johnny tried to leap at Hesso, but slammed against what seemed like an invisible barrier. "Argh! When I get out of here--" "You're not getting out of there." Hesso says coldly, cutting Johnny off. "You are my least favorite kind of spirit to encounter, a malevolent destroyer who sees themselves in the right for attacking others for a petty and arbitrary reason. *You disgust me more than Bim Bam*." "WHO THE HELL IS BI--" Johnny started, before he, the other two and the ring were converted into golden energy, which was then sucked up into Hesso's staff.

Hesso sighed for a moment, before being tackled and hugged by Nayla, the crowd cheering once again. "That was amazing, Hesso!" She shouts. "You're so cool!" "Heh, thanks..." Hesso groans a bit. "...just doing my job as an Excorcist." "The stage...the instruments...they're all ruined..." Bianca breathes, as Ethan and Julia helped Brett off the stage. "It's nothing a repair spell can't fix." Lavina replies. "Though, I'm not as good with repair spells as I am with healing spells..." Suddenly, just then, the instruments did, in fact, begin to repair themselves, as everyone's injuries were healing. "Huh?" Tobias demands, before they all look to see Agatha standing there, having waved a broomstick through the air like a staff. "Oh! Agatha!" Lavina shouts. "Who's she?" Matthew asks. "She's my magic teacher." Lavina explains. "I'm nowhere near as good as her." "Yet." Agatha adds. "Is everyone alright?" "I think we are, now." Ethan replies. "What do you say we continue the song?" Julia asks. "Yes! We've got to!" Bianca shouts. "Everyone, get ready again!"

Seemingly inside Hesso's staff, Gilbertus was swinging around his halberd, while Bim Bam was repeatedly poking Johnny in the cheek with one of his spider legs, Johnny just sitting there and crossing his arms with an enraged expression.

## Chapter 8 - The Legend of the Golden Scarab

"Back at the Museum...?" Tobias demands. "Doesn't anyone else remember what happened the last time we were here?" "It won't be that bad, Tobias." Mason replies. "After all, the newest exhibit will be hosting a sarcophagus that was recently discovered, as well as a golden amulet in the shape of a scarab." "The Golden Scarab?" Hesso suddenly asks, Mason turning towards him in brief confusion. "Oh?" Mason responds. "You know of it?" "It's said to be possessed by one of Egypt's most powerful priests." Hesso explains. "Anyone who wears it will be themselves possessed." "Wonderful." Tobias groans. "A ghost that actually possesses people." "I'm sure there's nothing to worry about." Mason says, walking into the museum.

"Welcome to the newest exhibit of the Westvalley Museum!" The Mayor declares. "The Egyptian Exhibit!" "Wait, this is new?" Tobias asks. "Well, at least our newest finds!" The Mayor replies. "The sarcophagus of Tutu-Amen and his necklace, the Golden Scarab! Legend says it grants power to anyone who wields it, but I don't think it should be worn--" "It shouldn't even be here!" Hesso shouts. "That belongs in his tomb! Do you have any idea what disturbing the tomb of a priest can do?!" "What, cause Malaria?" The Mayor asks. "We need to return it immediately!" Hesso continues. "Egypt isn't some ancient lost civilization, it still very much exists today!" "And they sold us this coffin." The Mayor responds. "They said they'd rather it be our problem."

"That's reassuring..." Tobias mutters, while Matthew notices Huxley and Dorsey walking in, looking around. "Uh, hey guys!" Matthew says, waving. "Yo." Huxley replies, while Dorsey looks on in confusion. "Oh, no..." Tobias groans again. "...if they're here again, there's probably another thief." "Wh-what?!" The Mayor shouts. "How?! Where?!" "We don't know for sure, Mr. Mayor." Dorsey explains. "But we think a relic hunter may be in the city, looking for the necklace." "Relic...hunter?" The Mayor asks nervously. "Hear his name is Ronan Gray." Huxley remarks. "Sounds like a total showoff, if you ask me." "Well, what are the precautions?" The Mayor demands. "We'll be standing guard in the exhibit at night, Sir." Dorsey says. "There's nothing to worry about."

While Mason soon led the class somewhere else, Hesso briefly looked at the sarcophagus, and the necklace, with narrowed eyes, before following.