"The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them." - Lois McMaster Bujold
It was a dark and stormy night.
As much of a cliché that sounds, tonight it really was.
Lightning struck across the sky, and the thunder that followed startled everyone who heard it. The torrent of rain pitter-pattered against a broken window on a lonesome house that stood alongside the beaten path toward Hai Mai Village, the village hub for marine export and trades between countries.
Most of its windows were boarded up, others were broken. Two stories high, this once majestic house has a long history, but now stands abandoned and in ruins alongside the road. Neglected and ravished by the elements of nature. Travelers would be at awe by the rare sight as they made their way to the village, but its aura of creepiness kept them all at bay from ever stepping inside.
Tonight though, the home was having visitors for the first time in years.
Rusty hinges screeched as the front door was slowly pushed open. A panda, soaked to the bone from the pouring rain, cautiously peeked inside to assess the interior's condition. The front door opened up into a hallway, and there was a door on the right wall. It looked in decent condition, and the wood looks like it held strong through the years. But it was eerily quiet inside, and dark, which were combinations he didn't like at all. But Hai Mai Village is still a longs way off, and they needed to get out of this storm.
Quietly the panda pushed the front door wide open and threw his carrying bag over his shoulder as he stepped inside. Behind him followed a rather nervous-looking fox, his eyes darting all over the place as he followed the panda into the abandoned home. He jumped from the wood creaking under his foot and quickened his steps to catch up to his companion.
It was the seventh month in the lunar calendar, a month where in China was regarded as the Ghost Month. It is on this month in which ghosts and spirits are believed to roam the living realm, free from the Underworld to interact with the living. Traditions during this month involve ancestor worshipping, offerings and prayers in order to pay their respects to the dearly departed.
Po Ping and Isao Zhong were headed to Hai Mai Village to attend the Ghost Festival, held on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. The Ghost Festival was a special annual festival, where the living come together to celebrate their ancestors, and give mass offerings for them, even give live performances to entertain the ghosts and rituals to relieve them from their sufferings.
Unfortunately along the way a terrible thunder storm impeded their travels, and forced them to seek shelter. The old abandoned house towering alongside the road was the nearest closest thing to shelter for miles.
The duo cautiously walked down the entrance hall as it leads them to an open family room. The wind was howling through the small holes in the walls and through the broken windows, and the rain was finding its way in through said windows. Old furniture littered the room, some of them eaten away by termites; others were covered up by blankets. The rests were heavy with dust and cobwebs, never been touched for many years.
Po sneezed from the dust-filled air. It'll do until the rain clears up, at least. He's not planning on spending the night in this place. He felt Isao close against him, as nervous and scared as he was of the place. There was just something about it that had them on edge. A…Sinister aura, if you will.
Another hall presented itself to the duo on the far end of the room. Po made steps to it as his instincts told him to check if they were indeed alone in this house before lowering his guard. Isao followed him as he didn't wish to stay alone. They both passed a half-covered mirror, but through the corner of his eyes Isao swore he saw something. Slowing himself to a stop he backpedalled to the mirror and looked at it. He saw his reflection in the cracked mirror. The fox in the mirror stared back at him, and then blinked, tilting his head to the side in an instant.
Isao yelped in fright and covered his mouth. Po was instantly by his side when he heard his companion's jump and looked into the mirror as Isao frantically pointed at it. Po stared at their reflections, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. He snapped his head at Isao's direction with a huff for the scare before continuing on his way, leaving Isao to contemplate his reflection again and wondering if it was only his imagination.
The hall turned a corner to the left, and it was there where they both found the stairs leading to the second floor. They could either follow the hall to the back of the house, or take the stairs and explore the second floor. Po glanced up the stairs and shuddered from a cold breeze. He settled to continue on the first floor, reaching another big room at the end. While the previous room looked more like a meeting room, this one had a more casual feel to it.
The two of them then split up. Po went to check the door leading out the back, finding it shut from years of rust getting the hinges stuck. Isao meanwhile looked around the room. There was dust and dirt everywhere, and every step he took kicked up a cloud of dust. His mind was more preoccupied trying to make sense of what he saw in the mirror, and he failed to notice a nearby closet door slowly opening by itself until the sound became audible enough for the fox to freeze in his tracks.
He turned to the closet once the sound came to a halt, expecting to come face to face with someone who was already in the house before them. Instead he faced an empty closet, nothing but a broom and a pile of rope inside. That didn't help Isao settle down. Someone opened that door.
Po turned away from the back door after giving up trying to open it. His eyes went on Isao and felt his heart nearly stop beating. He pressed his back to the door in reactive fright as someone or something was standing right behind Isao, a shadowy figure he couldn't make details out from. His voice was caught in his throat.
Isao felt the presence behind him and turned around, coming face to face with the dark figure. It had no face or features; it was like one big shadow looming over him. There was a sinister feeling emanating from it, the darkness was so thick Isao couldn't see through it. Its presence alone was surrounding the frightened fox with chills and made his legs numb.
"Get out…!"
Isao screamed as he fell back as the figure moved. He crawled back away from the thing before picking himself up to make a run for it. Po was already running back down the hall right behind Isao, none daring to take a peak behind him to check if the shadowy figure was following them.
Together the two of them jumped for the front door, only to discover to their horror that it was locked. Desperately Po heaved himself against the door, but the thick wood wouldn't budge. It was like a presence was holding it shut, denying them escape. Pardoning the language, but Po cursed their luck.
Isao was terrified as he watched Po, trying to make sense what he just saw. The figure they saw looked like a living shadow. What's worse was that it didn't have any features to speak of to even try to identify it. It was pure darkness, plain and simple.
The scared duo turned around and pressed their backs to the wall. A chilling breeze was coming from deep within the manor, carrying with it a chorus of sinister laughs. Instantly they realized, they had just entered a house where ghosts called home. It was the Ghost Month, and there was nothing keeping them from having fun with them tonight.
Both Po and Isao jumped with a terrified scream as they both felt hands on their shoulders, an impossible feat with their backs against the wall. They ran from the wall and looked back to see a ghost, in the shape of a Snow Leopard, coming out from the wall. It was grinning evilly at them, its eyes glowing red.
Po and Isao fled from the meeting room back down into the hall. Isao pulled Po's arm to stop him from running and pointed at the stairs, knowing that something else was still back there in the family room. It was either facing that thing again or go upstairs away from them.
They chose to climb up the stairs, ran through the nearest door and slammed it shut behind them.
Po panted as he pressed himself against the door to keep it shut. The laughs have stopped, and the house was deathly quiet again. Isao backed away from the door as he breathed heavily to calm his beating heart. He was terrified. He never expected to run into a haunted house, and now they were stuck here.
"Who are you?"
Isao tensed. He slowly turned around, and then his eyes widened as he saw another entity standing right behind him. It was a child, a Snow Leopard, just like the ghost from before. No older than eight to nine years old. He stared back at Isao with a blank look, but Isao didn't truly felt threatened by him. Rather, it looked like the little boy was curious of the newcomers.
Isao's eyes followed the boy's arm as it moved to point to a dresser on the far right side of the room. On top of the dresser was a frame and what looked like to be a crest tucked underneath the frame. The frame had a picture of five people, one of them being the same boy Isao just encountered. Isao looked back at where the boy was, but the apparition was gone. Isao jumped when he felt someone pressing up against his back, but he sighed in relief when he realized it was only Po, who came to check on him to see what he was looking at.
The two of them looked at the picture in the frame, taking note of the people in the hand-drawn picture. Five people, all of them Snow Leopards. They all had a crest on their clothes; the same design as on the crest the frame rested one. The family crest perhaps. They all looked rather happy. Maybe they were the original owners of the manor?
As Po and Isao looked at the picture they couldn't help but notice something. The faces in the picture were…Moving…
The two of them tensed, their faces contorting with fear. The faces in the picture suddenly became animated. Their eyes narrowed and glowed red and their lips parted as their tongues snaked out from their mouths. Their heads then turned upside down, their tongues defying gravity. What came more disturbingly later were their loud roars as their eyes shined an even more intense red.
Terrified they both ran straight out of the room and further down the hall on the second floor. The door at the end of the hall then swung open, prompting the two terrified lads to stop in their tracks. They both let out pathetic whimpers as a life-sized doll made out of wood stumbled out into the hallway and made its way toward them, its limbs lifelessly swaying about with every step as the ghosts' giggles echoed around them.
Po took his position in front of Isao after digging up a shred of courage to face the tangible opponent. He took a defiant stance and leaped with a battle cry and delivered a flying kick into the doll. The mannequin broke into pieces on impact, and Po stood tall with a laugh. But his grin was then replaced with one of horror as the broken-off pieces of the doll began to take a life of their own around the panda.
Po backed away in fright, but then the pieces began to assault the panda. Po yelped in surprise as he tried his best to protect his head as they struck him across the face, upside the head, his backside, all over the place.
Isao watched in horror and bewilderment as the doll pieces delivered a beating on his friend. He beckoned at Po and together made a run for it back to the stairs. As Isao made it to the stairs he stopped dead in his tracks as he came to another ghost, another Snow Leopard. It was baring its fangs at him, its eyes glowing red and daring them to come down. The sight sent chills down Isao's spine, but before he could warn Po of the danger waiting for them downstairs the panda ran right into him, sending them both tumbling down the stairs.
The ghosts – Three of them, at least – emerged from each piece of the destroyed doll as they giggled and laughed at their visitors falling down the stairs. The ghost that impeded Isao's path down the stairs joined them in their laughing fit.
Both Po and Isao's world was spinning until they both landed on a heap at the bottom of the stairs, with Isao being the unfortunate one to land first on the floor. The fox moaned as pain wracked his body, not to mention having a heavy panda on top of him reeling from the fall as well. As soon as he came to Isao noticed that the ghosts' laughter were long gone, and the house fell back into silence. He looked back up the stairs as best he could from his position. Something told him they won't be for long.
Po rolled off of Isao with a groan after the fox's request, giving Isao the freedom to stand back up on his feet. Their bodies were aching from the tumble down the stairs, but they were at least in one piece. Everything but their nerves and psyche though. They had to get out of here, before they both go insane.
Po desperately tried the front door again, but it wouldn't budge. He sighed dejectedly. He swears he could hear the ghosts mocking him in the wind's blow.
"Please…Don't leave…"
Isao and Po whirled about in alarm from the plea. They saw the child entity again standing at the end of the hall near the family room. It looked at them with pleading eyes before it faded out of view.
Po stood erect in fear while Isao bit his thumb. Don't leave? What does this little boy want with them? Isao took note that so far the little ghost boy was the only one in this house that hasn't tried to torment them out of their wits.
With the front door sealed off there was only one thing they could do. Sticking together they cautiously explored the first floor of the house. Some doors were sealed off. Either the hinges were so rusted they couldn't open, or the deterioration of the house made it impossible for them to access some of the rooms. On one of them Isao sighed in frustration, and out of curiosity he peaked through a hole in the door to see what was beyond it.
One second he was looking into a room that didn't look anything special, possibly a tea room if the center piece was of any indication. One second later something black obscured his view of the room, and then in the next second he was staring into someone's eye on the other side, looking right back at him through the hole.
"I see you."
Isao instantly threw himself off the door and pressed himself against the wall, clutching his chest over his heart expecting to have a heart attack at any second. He heard an amusing giggle coming from the other side of the door.
Po meanwhile finally found a door they could open. He went through it and found himself in a room with futons all over the floor. There was also a small pile of scrolls in a corner of the room, where the light from the moon outside shined on them through a nearby window. This must be the room where the guests used to stay. Judging by the dusts and the terrible conditions the futons were in it was obvious this room hasn't seen a visitor in years.
And perhaps it was a trick of the mind, but Po could've sworn he saw movement under one of the futons…
Unnerved and seeing nothing of interest Po turned to leave the room.
"Over here…"
Po turned with a gasp. That voice was the child's, but he was nowhere to be seen in the room. As he stepped back into the room to investigate one of the scrolls from the pile rolled itself near his feet. Po stared at it for the longest time. He nudged it with his foot, waiting for it to do something. He debated whether to pick it up or not, but then he just took the risk and picked it up.
He rolled the scroll open and took a look at it. It was a very old scroll of a traveler's log, which dated many years back, way before he or Isao were even born. It told the events of a big earthquake that struck China many years ago, and how it devastated the south providence. Po was familiar of it, he's heard about it so many times from travelers and old timers. Many died from the catastrophe, and those who survived found themselves with many hardships to overcome as the years went by.
Po looked up from the scroll and looked at his surroundings. Now that he thinks of it this is the south providence of China. He wondered, was this house devastated by the earthquake too? And were the previous family victims of the earthquake? Po feels that he's onto something here, and that little ghost boy is trying to reach out to him. It reminded him of the ghostly folklores of the Yuān Gu, spirits that try to reach out to the living for help.
"Help…"
The whisper made Po jump in fright, instinctively backing up and bumping into something. He jump in horror as he whirled about, facing an equally scared Isao who snuck up on him to join him in the room. They exchanged annoyed looks at each other for the fright, but when asked about the whisper Isao shook his head as he didn't hear anything.
They both looked up at the roof, hearing heavy footsteps coming from the floor above. They both shook in fright. They were toying with them.
There was nothing else of interest down on the first floor. The back door still wouldn't open, and the front door wasn't budging either. As much as they hated the idea, they had no choice but to check out the second floor again. Maybe they could find an unbarred window they could hurl themselves through as a last resort to escape. Heh.
Slowly the two terrified visitors scaled the stairs back to the second floor. The living doll parts were nowhere to be found. All was quiet. They didn't like that.
One end of the hall leaded to an unbarred window. Through it they noticed it faced the backyard, where they could see a pond and a lonesome tree. The only reason they didn't try escaping through this window was because of the high fence boarding the backyard perimeter. They couldn't climb over that.
Po and Isao slowly made their way down the rest of the hall. It was too quiet for their liking; they could hear everything, from the rain pouring outside to the creaky wood under their feet. They half-expect to hear a disembodied voice or scream at any moment.
Out of caution Po slowly opened one of the doors along the way, the same door he previously saw the living doll come out of. Inside he saw carpentry tools, stacks of wood and unfinished wooden dolls. Po recognized the designs as those used for props and training equipment.
As Po stared at them one of the unfinished dolls moved. Its head tilted in a way that if it had eyes Po would know it was looking at him.
"Wanna play?"
Po's body shook in fright from the voice and slammed the door shut with a gasp.
He caught up to Isao to the door at the end of the hall. Slowly they opened it and peaked through the small crack. It was a bedroom, with the bed in the middle and an old worn dresser set at the other end of the bed. Dust ruled this room, assisting the room with its depressing state.
Po sighed dejectedly as the only window in the room was boarded up. Another dead-end.
Isao wandered into the room, thoughtfully running his fingers over the furniture. In the right hands this home could've been perfect for a family, maybe even a vacation home. What could've happened that kept it abandoned for so many years?
Isao blinked as he spotted a rolled out scroll on a small table next to the bed. He skimmed over what was written on it and then called Po over. The writing was nearly faded, but they could still make out some of the words. It detailed the rebuilding of the house after the earthquake mentioned in a previous scroll Po found, but further into the scroll the writings became distraught, words of a heartbroken man expressing his loneliness and lost loved ones. The message was depressing, and they wondered what happened to the author of this scroll.
As Po and Isao hovered over the scroll a third individual peaks his head over their shoulders at the scroll they were looking at. This made the two travelers tense up, not expecting a third visitor in this house. They both turned on their spots and came face to face with another Snow Leopard ghost again. It laughed at them as its appearance made the two travelers scream their heads off.
Po backed away in fright, only stopping when he bumped into the dresser in the room. The furniture began to shake behind him, making the panda jump and back away from the wooden furniture. Its drawers all swung open and three ghosts slowly emerged from the open drawers. They all look at the panda and fox and bared their sharp fangs at them, their eyes glowing red and hissing through their teeth.
Po and Isao huddled together in terror, screaming their heads off. This was it, they were doomed. The ghosts are going to drag them all into the Underworld!
All four ghosts slowly floated to the two terrified travelers as if they were getting ready to tear them apart. But then something made them stop. Something spooked them in their tracks. Po and Isao were confused, but then they began to feel something…That feeling of overwhelming dread. Something else was coming…
The closet door of the room swung open, and from the depths of the closet came a sound so dreadful that the four ghosts cowered from it and immediately left the room. Po and Isao were now facing the opened closet door, the color of their skins bleaching out from the terrifying ordeal.
A dark shadowy figure came out of the closet, its detail-less face staring at them. Their hearts all climbed to their throats. It was the same ghost they encountered in the family room at the first floor. The terrifying aura was unmistakable. The dark shadowy figure huffed at them and reached out with a hand, its claws just barely noticeable in the shadows. They were horrified, and they felt this one truly meant them harm. It was an angry spirit, maybe even a Nán Guǐ!
"Get out…Get…Out…!"
Terrified out of their minds Po and Isao fled straight out of the bedroom and made a beeline to the stairs. They felt much safer down on the first floor before they took the gamble for the second floor.
As he bolted down the stairs still scared out of his mind Po tripped over his own two feet and took the second dive of the night down a flight of stairs. Isao paused at the top of the stairs and watched with a wince until Po's body finished its roll down the stairs. Once it was safe he dashed down stairs to his fallen friend and tried to stir him from his daze.
Po responded with a groan and allowed his head to hit the floor again. He cursed his luck for falling down the stairs again. He had enough of them down the stairs of the Jade Palace.
Isao looked back up the stairs, hoping that the spirit wasn't following them. He trembled in fright. He felt all alone in this place now with Po down and out. He wanted to curl into a ball and pray they would just leave them alone. Let them leave this place.
He sighed and decided to try again to get Po up when a faint sound made him leap in fright with a gasp. It didn't sound like a moan or one of the ghosts' laughter again. He strained his ears to hear. It sounded like a woman's sobs. Someone was crying? Here? Where was it coming from, he wondered.
"Help me…"
Cautious – But admirably considering how terrified he is – Isao followed the sobs into the family room. It lead him to the back door where he approached and pressed his ear to. The sounds, they were coming from outside.
He reached for the door knob and tried to open it. His heart skipped a beat when the knob turned and door opened. He could've sworn Po tried this door earlier and it wouldn't budge for him. Something told him the ghosts were leading him on, but he stupidly continued on.
The door opened to the backyard garden, as he expected. The rain outside slowed to a gentle drizzle, so it made it easier for him to see and step out into the backyard. There was the lone tree on one corner of the garden they saw from the window up on the second floor, and the pond right in the middle with a bridge to cross over it. And marking the perimeter was the fence that was too high for them to climb over.
"It hurts…It…Hurts…"
Isao gulped loudly from the whispers. The crying sounded close, so he followed his ears to the pond and crossed the bridge. He checked around the tree, but found nothing. As he stood trying to guess where the crying was coming from he figured out it was coming from the water, of all places. Now that little voice was telling him to run for it, but he stupidly ignored that sense of dread and wandered over to the pond and looked into the water.
He first saw his own image on the water's surface, nothing out of the ordinary. But then things got weird when a second image slowly formed next to his. Isao stared in awe as he saw the image of a woman in the water, a Snow Leopard. She was crying in the water, unaware of the boy staring down at her.
"Help me…"
Isao recoiled in shock when the woman slowly looked up at him through her tear-filled eyes. She looked terrified, pleading at him with her eyes for a way out of her watery prison. Isao couldn't react or even move when she screamed at him before she lunged at him. Her icy hands grabbed the terrified fox and pulled him under.
Back at house Po stirred as his senses were coming back to him. He slowly pushed himself up to sit and rubbed the bump on the back of his head. He groaned and pushed himself up to his feet, wobbling a little as he tried to get rid of the cobwebs in his head. He looked around…Where'd Isao go? He was right behind him when they bolted from the top floor.
Oh no…Did the shadowy figure get him?
He ran back up the stairs and casted his eyes down the hall. It was eerily quiet, but there was no sign of Isao anywhere up here. And he was not going back to the bedroom.
Po returned down to the first floor and looked over at the family room. He was relieved when he saw Isao stepping back in from the back door. He just went outside to the backyard…Wait a minute, that door was sealed shut before! How did Isao get past it?
More confusing though was that silly looking smile plastered on Isao's face, as if he was high on something. He frolicked across the family room, and when he saw Po he made a beeline to the panda. Po was starting to get a little creeped out as Isao grabbed him, rubbed the fur on his face and giggled as he pulled on his sleeves.
Po grimaced from the attention and held Isao at arm's length to calm him down. It was at that moment when he noticed how cold to the touch Isao was, not to mention soaking wet. He didn't take a dip at the pond in the backyard, did he? In this weather?
Po then held him by the shoulders and looked at him. There was a vacant look in his eyes, and he kept looking around smiling at his environment, apparently not bothered anymore by the decaying and depressing atmosphere. Either the poor fox finally snapped, or something's gotten into him.
Suddenly there was loud laughter and hollers coming from the second floor. Po instantly turned on his heels and felt his face lose its color. The four ghosts from before spilled from the second floor down into the family room, all laughing and cheering as they flew circles around both Po and Isao. This up close Po recognized them from the photo Isao found on the top floor. All of them Snow Leopards, teenagers.
As celebration they took turns making scary faces at Po every time they pass over him. Po recoiled in fear from every one. They twisted their faces to horrifying proportions, their tongues were as long as a snake's, and their eyes glowed red when they wanted to.
Eventually Po had enough and grabbed Isao's arm to get out of there, maybe even plow through the fence out back, anything to get out. What only stopped him was that Isao wouldn't budge from his spot. He looked at Isao and was surprised if not horrified. He didn't look scared. He actually looked…Happy. Po didn't understand this.
And then things got worse after that. He heard thundering footsteps coming from behind him and felt that sense of dread again. He closed his eyes with a whimper and prayed it wasn't that dark shadowy figure again from before. He slowly turned and opened his eyes, ready to scream from the horror. His jaw only fell from the awkwardness and surprise as he came face to face with a big white blanket towering over him. Compared to what he's seen tonight this was the last thing he expected the ghosts to pull; an old cliché from a book of tricks.
He huffed from annoyance and pulled the sheet off. He immediately regretted the decision.
Under the blanket was a disembodied suit of battle armor. It was rusted all over the place from years of neglect, but that didn't stop one of the ghosts from wearing it. Po's ears drooped in fear as all four ghosts floated in place behind the animated suit of armor. He noticed that if he squinted just a little he could make out that dark shadowy figure from before in the battle armor.
Po's pupils dilated as the animated battle armor reached back. He then whimpered as the battle armor threw that arm forward right into him.
Upon contact Po was sent flying straight through the back door from the surprisingly mighty blow, crashing onto the ground into the backyard. Through his dazed state he heard the ghosts inside laughing at him before the back door slammed shut by itself.
Po lied on his side on the backyard grass, whimpering and wrapping his arms over his chest in pain and discomfort. For a ghost that attack hurt him like all heck. He rolled over and coughed as he tried to fill his lungs of air again.
He tried to make sense out of what just happened. The ghosts, five in all including the shadowy figure, surrounded them with laughs and cheers. They then proceeded to kick him out of the house like some sort of intruder, completely contradicting their attempts of keeping them inside and kept Isao inside with them. But why, he wondered. Why Isao?
Po gasped. He remembered how cold to the touch Isao was, and how spaced out he looked. Did the ghosts do something to him? What do they want with him, he thought. And what are they going to do to them?
Po picked himself up on his paws and knees. He looked up and kept himself from jumping in shock. That little ghost boy from before was with him, standing a few feet away from him. It began to dawn on Po that out of all the ghosts in this house the boy's the only one who meant him no harm. In fact, the ghost boy has been trying to tell him something.
The little boy pointed. Po at first thought it was pointing at him, but then he took a double-take and realized he was pointing at the pond behind him. The pond he just barely managed to avoid falling into.
Po crawled to the edge of the pond and looked at the water. He saw his own image in the water, and he made a joke to himself at how awful he looked. He then noticed a second image forming in the water, and when that image completely formed Po leaped back with a frightening scream. What he saw terrified him, and it took every ounce of panda power he had left to force himself back for a double-check.
Isao was in the water. He was pleading to Po, banging his fists on the water's surface desperate to get out. He looked terrified in there, trapped in the watery tomb.
Po shook in horror as he recalled another ghostly folklore. The Shuǐ Guǐ, or the "water ghost." Spirits of those who drowned and continue to live in the water, trapped until they attack and drown their unsuspecting victim. The trapped spirit would then steal the victim's body and return to the living realm, while the victim's spirit takes its place in the water, repeating the cycle. Tì Shēn, "replace the body."
Po's body shook in terror, but then his paws curled into fists into the ground as he gritted his teeth. It was one thing to play pranks and scared them out of their minds, those are the type of ghostly mischief one would expect during the Ghost Month, but this was taking it too far. He will not take this sitting down. Time to teach these ghosts what happens when you mess with the Dragon Warrior and his friends. Especially his friends.
With a huff he marched himself straight back to the door and kicked it open. The ghosts were still in the family room, cheering and laughing as they circled around Isao's body, no doubt delighted that whatever ghost friend that was trapped in the water was finally free. Po called them out and surprised them all. They all sneered at him and made faces as the suit of armor that clobbered the panda out of the house leapt between Po and the ghosts.
Rather than recoil in fright Po stood his ground and took a battle stance, defying the ghost's terror.
The suit of armor lunged at its target. Po lunged as well and slammed his fists into the armor's. He stepped back and blocked a swing from the armor and threw a kick into the armor's chest plate. He leapt over the ghost's sweep kick and counterattacked with a fist into the armor's helmet. The attack sent the helmet flying, but the blow completely went through the ghost, it didn't even get hurt. Almost immediately the armor countered with an uppercut right under Po's jaw, knocking him airborne and sending him flying against the wall. The ghost siblings all cheered for the attack.
Grunting from the pain Po rubbed his jaw and went back into action with a shoulder-tackle into the animated armor, knocking it back and down into the ground. The ghost, growling in anger, picked up a piece of furniture from the room and hurled it at the panda. Po reared his right fist back and threw it forward with a roar, exploding the wooden table into pieces on contact. The display of power scared the ghost siblings.
Flowing with the momentum of the fist Po allowed his body to turn about on his heel, and as he came back around he reared his left elbow back and smashed it against another piece of furniture the shadowy figure threw at him in succession. He finished his circling by throwing his right fist forward, once again smashing it through another wooden piece of furniture into pieces.
As he finished he realized the ghost was charging right at him. Po braced himself and met the ghost's tackle head-on and kept himself from being thrown to the ground, like a sumo wrestler resisting the other's charge. With both his fists together he slammed them down into the armor's backside, throwing the ghost off-balance before meeting Po's knee into the armor's chest plate. Being at one with the pieces of armor the ghost recoiled from every strike. Po then took a step back and leapt forward, slamming the ghost armor with his girth and flung him across the family room for good measure.
It was around at this time when the ghost siblings realized that nothing was going to stop the crazed panda. Fearing of losing their ghostly companion again they coaxed 'Isao' to retreat up the stairs to the second floor. Po caught on to their plot and pushed through the ghost armor after them. The ghosts tried to impede Po's passage by hurling numerous items in the room at him, but nothing was going to stop Po from saving his friend.
'Isao' only made it to the top of the stairs when Po caught up to 'him.' He grabbed 'Isao' by the arm and pulled him in, grabbing a hold of 'him' in a bear hug. Po was once again shocked by how cold he was, proof that whatever took possession of his body was long dead. But the body snatching gig was over; it was time to give Isao's body back.
As Po held 'Isao' at bay he gasped as the door on the far end of the hall flung open. The ghost siblings were back possessing a life-sized wooden doll just like before. Except this time they were possessing around three of them at once, and they were heading right for him to save their companion.
Po couldn't take his eyes off of the twitching and nightmare-inducing movements of the possessed dolls until he heard a commotion coming downstairs. He looked down the stairs and whimpered as the possessed battle armor was making its way up the stairs toward him. They had him cornered.
Po feared that by the end of the night he's going to end up a ghost as well if he didn't think of something. He backed away from the incoming dolls and battle armor and considered what little options he had. Glancing behind him he noticed the window at the end of the hall which looked down over the backyard. The backyard garden…And the pond looked big enough…And he could easily plow right through it…
With little choice Po made his decision with a loud gulp. "This is gonna suck…"
The ghosts expressed shock as they witnessed the panda barreling down the other direction straight to the window. Po closed his eyes after he hurled himself through the second story window, all the while carrying and holding Isao's stolen body in his arms and repeatedly screaming in his head about how insane this whole idea of his was.
But history has proven time and time again that Po's one lucky panda. He crashed into the water as hoped, completely missing the bridge as prayed. The water was incredibly cold, forcing Po to gasp and release his grip on 'Isao' on impact into the icy water. He was amazed at how deep the pond was.
From the second story window the ghosts watched in horror after abandoning their vessels. Po broke through the water's surface with a loud gasp and heaved himself out of the water. He coughed as he panted on his paws and knees for breath after the impact into the water knocked it right out of him, his body trembling from the icy cold water. Once he recovered he looked back at the water in anticipation.
A few tense seconds passed before Isao resurfaced from the water with a huge gasp. Po scooped him up right out of the water and patted his back as the fox coughed up water from his lungs. Po looked at him warily, hoping that his hastily put together plan worked. Isao looked at him, still panting for breath, and smiled before he threw himself at Po, grabbing the bewildered panda in a hug.
It was at that moment that Po realized that Isao's body wasn't cold anymore, and with a relieved sigh returned the hug. His friend was back.
The ghost siblings watching from above were heartbroken that their efforts were in vain, but they were more horrified by the shadowy figure's reaction to the whole thing. Its eyes began to glow more intensely, and the phantom released its possession on the suit of armor and snaked across the surface of floor like a living shadow, down the stairs and finally across the family room to the door.
Po and Isao's reunion was short-lived. They both shot up to their feet in fright as the house's back door flew open with a loud thud. They both recoiled in total horror as a chilling strong gust of wind erupted through the door accompanied with a loud and terrifying wail. The dark phantom confronted the two trespassers after it snaked out of the house and increased in size, towering over the terrified duo with its terrifying glowing eyes, its detail-less form and darkness so thick they couldn't see through it.
Po and Isao huddled together in horror as they realized they had just totally angered the leading ghost of the house, the one they knew could easily harm them if it wanted to. The dread and horror they felt from this restless spirit was so powerful they feared for their very lives.
"Please…Stop…"
Po gasped from the familiar voice. The little boy was back, standing on the other side of the pond. The shadowy figure reacted from the little boy's presence and stopped its ghostly wail, much to Po's relief.
The little ghost boy looked pleadingly at the shadowy figure, and just then Po saw a single tear rolling down the little boy's cheek. It was just as terrified as they were from the shadowy figure.
"Please stop…"
Isao lifted his head off of Po's chest and turned to see what was going on. The shadowy figure was pacified from the little boy's pleas. The ghost siblings cautiously poked their heads out from the doorway, curious to see what happened that calmed the angry spirit.
The shadowy figure slowly shrunk down to roughly an adult's size as the little boy approached it. Its glowing eyes faded into regretful and saddening eyes. When the little boy was close enough the shadowy figure reached out with its arms and held the boy close to it. Soon after its shadows began to shed off the spirit, revealing the ghost's identity as a Snow Leopard just like every ghost in the house. It held the little boy in a fatherly embrace, and realizing the ghost was calm the siblings floated out from their spot by the doorway and joined the two spirits.
Po and Isao were relieved and calm once they sense that the spirits won't harm them anymore. Seeing them together they realize the adult one is their father. Isao gasped and looked down at the water, soon seeing the image of the female spirit in the water returning, looking back at him with pleading eyes. Isao cautiously backed up, then looked to notice the spirits by the edge of the pond on the other side, looking down at the trapped spirit as well.
Isao's ears lowered. The one trapped in the water was their mother, his wife.
"Please…Help us…"
The little boy stared at them with pleading eyes from his father's arms. Choking back a tear Po reached into his pocket and pulled out the scroll from before, rolling it open one more time for both him and Isao to read through it again. The earthquake this scroll described took many lives, and there have been testimonies of some of the deceased were never claimed, nobody to mourn and honor them.
Perhaps that is what happened to this family. And recalling the scroll they found in the bedroom up on the second floor their father must've been the sole survivor of the family, and after feverishly restoring the house he couldn't go on anymore and died of a broken heart over his loss. And without any proper prayers or send-offs their restless spirits became bound to this place, forever. Their hearts went out to them.
Isao looked up at the night sky. The rain finally let up and the clouds gave way for the full moon. Judging by its location it must be past midnight. For all intent and purposes it was the Ghost Day, the day of the Ghost Festival.
Po and Isao looked at each other, their eyes lighting up. The Ghost Festival was meant for something like this, and it almost felt like fate lead them both to this home and to this family of spirits who needed closure, a light to guide them to the peaceful afterlife the living never brought them after so many years.
Deciding they both returned inside the house and got to work. Using the furniture from the family room they had no problem creating an improvised shrine. Isao made a quick trip upstairs to the room where they found the family portrait to retrieve the family crest, which was quickly added to the makeshift shrine.
They both then dug into their respective carrying bags. Given that they were headed to Hai Mai Village for the Ghost Festival they were rather prepared for something like this. Each pulled out incenses and adorned the shrine with seven of them, one for each family member. They donned their medallions and religious robes and held their very own little Ghost Festival.
They lit each incense with a prayer, offered some food Po brought with him from his dad's noodle shop, and even burned joss paper each folded in the shape of carpentry tools to appease and honor the father and husband of this family, who was a skilled carpenter and single-handedly rebuilt his home after the earthquake.
A few times Po and Isao would both perform rituals and ceremonies based on their religions and beliefs to calm the spirits. Twice they would march through every inch of the house with their candles and incenses spreading their offerings and prayers into every room. And even sometimes they would pull a show or two that would amuse and please the spirits. They figured it would do well for at least five of them, which at heart they were still children and longed for entertainment for years considering how they pranked them all night. Not to mention it would allow the two of them to have some fun while they were at it.
They didn't forget the spirit trapped in the water though. Some of their prayers and rituals took place near the pond, in hopes that they would reach the unfortunate mother trapped in her watery grave.
These rituals and prayers went on for the rest of the night. And during the whole thing Po and Isao would catch the little boy in the corner of their eyes, following their every step. And when daylight broke there was an overwhelming sense of peace throughout the whole house. That sinister aura they felt before was gone, that sense of dread dispersed.
Po smiled as the front door opened with no resistance and stepped outside, stretching his arms and back after the ordeal. He was so relieved to be free again, outside basking in the morning sunshine. He was overwhelmed by pride and happiness after the good deed they just accomplished. He looked back at the house and felt no fear or dread.
Isao came rushing out of the house as soon as Po stepped down from the home's porch and called to him. The panda looked at his friend and beamed from ear to ear as Isao showed him some paper lotus lanterns he carefully crafted. On each paper lotus Isao wrote the names of the family that once lived in this house. Po didn't ask from where he learned their names. Fourteen days from now they will set a lit candle in each lotus and set them off on a paper boat. They will direct the spirits and show them way to the afterlife, where they will finally rest in peace.
"Thank you."
Po and Isao whirled to face the front door as they heard the whisper. There was nobody there of course, but they knew they were being watched, grateful for what their visitors have done for them. They gave them a sense of peace, and allowed them to move on, set them free.
The two travelers bid their goodbyes and set back on their journey toward Hai Mai Village, both of them unable to keep themselves from smiling.
Fourteen days later the sea next to Hai Mai Village was lit up by hundreds of floating lotus lanterns, the lanterns Po and Isao made among them, guiding the spirits and ghosts back for a peaceful afterlife after much rituals and offerings. Each one burned out as their respective spirits all made their way back, including the family's lanterns.
Two days later, on their way back to the Valley of Peace Po and Isao couldn't help but make one quick pit stop to that fateful abandoned home. Aside from the bumps and sounds of an aging home there was nothing else but a sense of peace and tranquility. Even the pond out in the back was tranquil, no trapped spirit there.
The house was now peaceful. All was well.
The End