"NONE SHALL PASS! UNICORN WAY IS OFF LIMITS! THERE ARE GHOSTS EVERYWHERE!"

After a few seconds, Scarlet's fingers finally unplugged out of her ear.

"Well, isn't he loud?"

She rolls her eyes and stops in front of the guard and the Unicorn Way tunnel entrance. "Private Stillson, am I wrong?"

The guard eyes the blonde girl, only to goggle at a wax-sealed letter all cross-eyed at the next second.

Stillson straightens his back. "Seems legit. I'll let you through. Mind the ghosts."

He inserts his spear into a strange hole next to the tunnel entrance, and the gate lifts open. As he pulls the spear tip out, it leaves a glittering trail.

Morgan notices the sparkles and speaks up. "The spear… a magic key?"

The guard blinks at Morgan, but his face is kept straight. "Professor Drake is it? I'll make note to him of your precise eyes…"

His words waver, waiting for her name.

"It's Morgan… sir. Morgan Mistblade: novice conjurer."

"Alright then," the guard confirms. "Off you wizards go. To think the Headmaster is desperate to send novices to this street… Then again, we're only privates…"

His head stoops low and Morgan can't help but notice. "Sir… Are you alright?"

The guard lets go of his vigilant stance. "My daughter lives on this street… surrounded by skeletal pirates. I heard rumors that her house was broken into, yet, I have to stand this post. I said I'll be coming back, but it has been weeks. She only has me, you know?"

Morg lays her sympathetic, blue eyes on the guard. "We'll be sure to check if she's okay."

The guard smiles with relief. "Connie lives 3 blocks down the north street of Unicorn Way, in a red and yellow roofed house."

"Connie is it?" Scarlet asked. "She'll be fine. Don't worry."

Nicole giggles in the dark, really ruining the tense air, then watches the lamps hung on the stone-laden walls of the tunnels. Soon, the four reaches sunlight. Everything seems fine. Everything was sunny and butterflies floated around the brushes and flowers. Their steps were on tan cobblestones that were laid out on a large, circular cul-de-sac. On their right was a unicorn man with a sharp-pointed sabre.

Morgan watches the half-creature. He was like Teacher Moolinda or Mister Lincoln, only half-unicorn. "That person, he must be the duelmaster, Diego. Aaand that behind him must be the Arena-"

"Come on, Morg!" Scarlet slapped her back. "Not the time for sightseeing!"

Morgan rubs her back and slides aside her blonde hair out of the way. "Owowow…. O-Okay. You didn't have to hit so hard…"

The four walked passed by a theurgist, who seemed busy in his own thing, and past an old woman, half-frightened as she passed by with some laundry. The young wizards find their selves on the sidewalk of another cul-de-sac, to see ghosts. Off in the opposite side of the street, a guard approached a ghost, attempting to pierce its ghostly white clothes, but it was no good. Agitated, the ghost rushed through the guard, making him pass out.

"Oookay, so don't let the curtains go through you." Nicole gaped. "Got it."

Scarlet carefully stepped up to the crowd of ghosts and pulled out her wand. The spirits notices her and they seem to take a defensive stance. Immediately, a ghost darts toward her and Scarlet's arm wave around angrily, drawing a fire rune with her wand.

"Fire spell: Will of the Wisp!"

The rune bursts into a bunch of embers, scattering and focusing on the ghost, deflecting the soul off its course in a hot gust of embers, and soon disintegrates it into white smoke. She turns to her friends.

"See? I guess it shouldn't be so hard after all-"

"Watch out, you idiot!"

Adrian disappears from his friends, speeding up to Scarlet's side and his wand glows. Quickly, he swipes the baton up, and a wall of dense cold air and snow follows. The ghosts sped into the shield and bounced off. They shook their heads out of the stars and retreated to their pack.

"Fast…" Scarlet stood wide eyed behind her thaumaturgic friend. "Adrian, how did you-"

Her words came to a halt as Nicole jumped overhead.

"COME GET SOME, SUCKAAAS!"

Her arms twirled a wooden staff above her as she was airborne.

"Soul Weaving: Ghouls!"

As she lands, she slams the bottom of her staff into the pavement, crackling the street around her. Hands burst out of the ground and rotted men in torn, but fine, dirtied suits, dug out through the cobblestone as if it was fragile cookies. The zombies readied themselves with spades as their bodies were refilled with youthful life, and charged toward the lost souls. The kept swiping at the floating white sheets away, until the spirits floated into non-existence. However, it was only four undead versus a hovering mob of ghosts. It wasn't long until they we're consumed by the spirits.

"Finnian! Preston!" Nicole reached helplessly for her zombies.

Eh? She named them? Scarlet thought.

A bit aggravated, Nicole swiped her staff and spun it. A death rune drew itself in front of her and a swarm of fifteen or so dark sprites appeared in violet sparkle dust. She twirled her scepter and it froze in place as she pointed it at the ghosts.

"Super Sprite Squad! Goooo!"

At her command, the sprites darted around individual ghosts, making them dizzy and their forms faded a bit.

Taking advantage of the situation, Adrian slipped his wand into his sleeve and his hands began to glow with an azure aura. He hastens to the dazed ghosts, swiping at them from a short distance, then a torrent of ice and snow followed his hand movements. With each strike, Adrian let out a fighting sound, like he was battling in hand-to-hand combat, something a wizard wouldn't do.

Scarlet watched Adrian's movements intently. "Is he… really a wizard?"

As Nicole and Adrian paired up to fight the crowd, a murder of ghosts broke off from the group and jetted towards Morgan. She stumbled to take out her wand and drew a myth rune.

"Dream Weaving: Blood Bats!"

She tapped the rune with her wand but it simply fizzles out. Frantically, she keeps waving her baton.

"Bats! Bats! Blood bats!"

The ghost rushed closer to her at a dangerous velocity and Scarlet's wand was raised in Morgan's direction, glowing in a yellow light. "MORGAN!"

Scarlet's spell cast was interrupted as an immense figure appeared from Morgan's wand, landing onto the grass with a large thud. It was burly and muscular. Deformed, its back was hunched, and its skin was pale. Its head was covered in a tattered brown hood, and it wore a torn cloak of the same color. The spirits stopped dead in their tracks in caution as the hunchback let out a tense huff of air.

"Wh-What?" Morgan looked at her creation with half fear and half astonishment, refusing to acknowledge her ability.

The hunchback charged toward the ghosts, its steps cracking the ground. Soon, he changes to running on all fours. The creature swipes at the ghosts furiously and takes one soul by the neck and smashes it into the ground. Nicole and Adrian watched the creature devastate the crowd of ghosts in horror, until Nicole squirmed around and hugged onto Adrian.

"He's so cute!" Nicole squealed.

The last ghost disappeared in the beast's hand, but he wasn't done. There was still one remaining soul, wandering not far away from Morgan, circling near a gazebo in the park. He stampedes in the lone ghost's direction. Morgan then notices something, and then switches to the charging creature.

Morgan called out. "Hunchback! Stop!"

Yet, he does not stop.

"Hunchback! You! Stooop!"

She digs around in her mind for the right words.

"Mudge! I tell you, stop!"

The creature ceases to attack, its hand just a step away from the unnoticing soul.

"I can hear it," Morgan breathed.

Her friends joined Morgan, panting as they arrive.

"Morgan!" Scarlet called. "What's going on? Why did he stop? What is that big thing?"

"I can hear it."

Scarlet and the others looked at her weirdly. "What?"

Morgan points at the lone ghost as it moans and wanders in front of the hunchback, mumbling with a girl's voice.

"Lonely…. Dad… It's lonely… Come back…."

The conjurer watches the ghost and slowly stands up, coming closer to the soul. Softly, Morgan calls out to the ghost, "Connie?"

The ghost finally notices Morgan. "Dad?"

Morgan stammers. "N-No?"

The soul of Connie takes a hostile stance. "Dad… What did you do with dad?"

Morgan speaks again, humbling the spirit. "Your father is safe… He's always waiting to come back. Don't worry, come with me. I can take you to him…"

Connie approaches Morgan cautiously as Morgan pulls out a flask. The ghost reaches out for Morgan's hand and is sucked into a wisp in her palm. Gently, Morgan guides the wisp into the flask and screws it shut with a cork. She then turns to her friends.

"Guys… Her soul and body are still connected by her spirit. She can still become alive again."

Scarlet's hands wrap around the flask as she takes it up to her eyes.

"Then, her body must be at the house Private Stillson mentioned."

Morgan nods in agreement, but is surprised as the hunchback pokes at her. Scarlet and Adrian's eyes widen at the large figure, but the hunchback's attention stuck on Morgan.

"You, girl. You summoned me. You gave me a name… What was it?"

Morgan's blue eyes calmed and she tries to remember. "M-Mudge."

"Mudge…" the hunchback repeated.

"Have you… Do you have a name?" Morgan asks.

The hunchback looked down at her clothes then to her wand, and back at her face.

"I was nameless. My previous masters only referred to me as hunchback, or beast, or thing."

"Your previous masters? Where are they now?"

The hunchback stared down Morgan with a grim look.

"Dead. They refuse to acknowledge me, and so I refuse to acknowledge them."

Morgan's eyes shook at Mudge's words of death, and the hunchback became irked.

"And are you also scared of me?"

Instead of saying anything, she wrapped her embrace around one of Mudge's arms, hugging onto him with warmth.

"Mudge… Even if they did call you things you didn't like, you can't kill those that don't deserve it."

The hunchback was dumbfounded by Morgan's surprising reaction, along with her friends, except for Nicole, who just went, "D'aaaaw!"

Mudge froze still as Morgan hugged onto him. In return, he awkwardly pats on her head.

"Then I will do so as you wish… And I will protect you until the end, because you acknowledged me."

"No," Morgan mumbled.

The hunchback raised a brow. "No?"

She unburies her face from Mudge's burly arm and looks up to him. "No, I don't acknowledge you. You are my friend. And as you take care and protect me, I will do the same."

Mudge stayed silent, astonished at her words. Finally he spoke.

"Thank you… my lady."