Chapter 11
The beautiful countryside of New England with all its trees, plants, cities and towns is one of the most picturesque regions of not only the United States, but also of the entire world. That being said it would seem that this region of the country would be the last place that something weird would ever happen, especially a mystery involving one of the members of Mystery Inc., but that was indeed what was happening at the present time in the town of Salem, Massachusetts.
It all started a few days ago when Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby Doo traveled to the quaint New England village, famous for its rather unfortunate connection with a dark moment in the history of the United States, the Salem Witch Trials during the 1600's.
The chicken hearted mystery solving Great Dane and his friends were excited beyond belief to see their musical friends the Hex Girls perform during Salem's Halloween Festival, but were sidetracked just a bit when they started looking around the various stands and booths providing products for purchase at said event.
Despite the fact that the team of sleuths had no plans on solving any mysteries in New England, fate has a funny way of playing a part in peoples lives and especially in the lives of the five members of Mystery Incorporated. While browsing through a seemingly innocent booth selling jewelry, the unofficial leader of the team of young sleuths picked out a particularly mysterious gold amulet with a sparkling green emerald set right in the middle.
At first the amulet seemed like just another inexpensive souvenir or trinket, but following a strange set of circumstances and mysterious happenings that occurred while Fred possessed the amulet, the blond youth couldn't help but wonder if there was something more about the amulet underneath the surface, like there was a hidden secret surrounding it or a hidden past that might affect the rest of his life.
Of course after Fred bought the amulet he would find out that not only was there a hidden secret, but there was also a hidden past involving the trinket, a secret and past that would throw the young man and his friends into a mystery that would be nothing like any case Mystery Inc. had ever investigated.
At the present time the blond unofficial leader of Mystery Inc. finds himself running through a mansion belonging to a wealthy businessman/warlock named Jonathan Steele. However, the young sorcerer is not running through the strange house just merely for his health and well being, in fact he is participating against his will in one of the most bizarre cat and mouse games in history.
The young adult warlock is playing the role of the mouse, trying to find a place to hide from his mysterious and evil foe, while he attempts to figure out a plan to defeat him once and for all. Meanwhile, the feline is being played by the sinister warlock Jonathan Steele, who intends to capture the youngster once and for all, and also plans to take away his amulet, which would give him the power to rule the world.
But Fred Jones isn't the kind of young adult or warlock for that matter that will just lie down and let a sinister sorcerer take over the world, not at all; at this moment the young sorcerer is running down a corridor, attempting to figure out a plan to derail the sorcerer's plot for world domination, which after seeing what the warlock could do won't be easy.
"Man, this running stuff is exhausting; no wonder Shaggy and Scooby are always eating, all that running must give them a major appetite" Fred remarked to himself, also trying to catch his breath as he spoke.
Without warning, there was a plume of black smoke and making an appearance in the corridor, albeit in a very flashy manner was none other then the sinister warlock Jonathan Steele, who looked quite unhappy to say the least.
"Well Mr. Jones, it appears we meet again; now, what kind of hide and seek game would this be if I found you rather easily?" Mr. Steele said, with a sinister sneer on his face.
"Not very fun I'm guessing" Fred replied, clearly unamused as he spoke.
"Good, at least you know what I'm capable of; now, I would suggest you start running again, because the next time I find you I will take your amulet and your power will be mine!" Mr. Steele declared, before disappearing in another plume of smoke.
"Brother, that Mr. Steele means business and I guess I better figure out a way to defeat him before it's too late" Fred said to himself, trying to figure out where his friends were so he could find them before the villainous warlock did.
Soon the blond young warlock started walking down another hallway in search of his friends, but within a few minutes he began hearing voices and wondered just who they belonged to, and whether they were indeed friend, or whether they were foe. Curiosity having gotten the better of him, Fred took a position at the corner of the corridor and waited for whatever evil creature that would try and harm the young adult.
"OK you creeps, and especially you Mr. Steele, I'm ready to use my amulet to trap you, so get ready for a rude awakening" Fred said to himself as he concentrated his energy and held his amulet, which began glowing slightly.
Soon the youngster was ready and prepared to face his enemies, but when the voices began getting louder, something in the warlock's eyes and face told him that maybe this wasn't the foe he was expecting, but rather his friends. Within the next few moments, the youngster would receive his answer, as three familiar young adults, three musicians and a Great Dane rounded the corner and saw Fred, as well as his amulet, which was still glowing.
"Wait Freddie, don't use your magic, it's us!" Daphne declared; thankfully for the red head, the young warlock's amulet stopped glowing and returned to a normal green, which meant that Fred could relax and speak to his friends.
"Whew, am I glad to see you guys again; how did all of you get out of the dungeon?" Fred asked.
"Simple Freddie, Scooby picked the lock and let us out" Daphne replied.
"Good work Scooby Doo, and thank heavens you guys are safe" Fred remarked.
"We're still not quite safe yet, remember we still have to capture Mr. Steele and stop him from taking Fred's amulet, because if we don't he could use it to take over the world" Velma explained.
"Right Velma, and there's only one thing to do in a situation like this: build a trap" Fred replied.
"Like not a chance Fred, a trap means bait, and bait usually means Scooby and I have to get involved" Shaggy stated, shaking his head as he spoke.
"Reah, ri ron't rant to re rait," Scooby agreed.
"Actually you guys, this time you don't have to be the bait" Fred replied.
"Like we don't?" Shaggy asked.
"Right Shaggy, you guys can relax this time; besides, I have the bait for this trap all picked out" Fred replied.
"Well don't keep us in suspense Freddie, who's the bait for this trap?" Daphne inquired.
"Why me of course" Fred replied proudly.
"You? Why would you be the bait to catch Mr. Steele Freddie?" Daphne asked.
"Easy Daphne; Mr. Steele's still looking for me so he can get my amulet and he can use its power, right?" Fred explained.
"Right" Daphne stated.
"So if we set a trap for that sinister sorcerer, with me as the bait, we can trap him and then he won't harm anyone ever again" Fred replied.
"Good plan Freddie, I just wish you didn't have to be the bait though," Daphne said, with her hand on the young warlock's arm as she spoke.
"How come Daph?" Fred asked.
"Well, we've never had a mystery where you had to be the bait before; I really care a lot about you and I'm worried that something might happen to you" Daphne replied.
"Relax Daphne, I'm getting better at this magic thing, and I'm brave enough to lure that evil warlock into a trap, so don't worry about me, I can do this" Fred said, with his hands on the red head's shoulders trying to reassure her that he was going to be okay.
"All right Freddie, if you say so" Daphne replied, still unsure of the blond young adult's abilities.
"Good, now let's get down to business" Fred said as the gang and the Hex Girls got into a huddle and began whispering to one another, just in case the evil warlock happened to be watching or listening, which at the moment he wasn't.
A few moments later, Fred stood in the hallway, ready to use his amulet while Daphne and Velma stood by at the entrance to another corridor, the Hex Girls stood next to a grandfather clock, and Shaggy and Scooby crouched down underneath a nearby table, albeit nervously as always.
Soon the sinister sorcerer entered the hallway that contained the gang and Fred, at first he wondered just where the group of sleuths had gone to, but as soon as he caught sight of the blond warlock holding up his magical artifact, he smiled and began laughing menacingly, which made the budding magic user a bit nervous as the laughing seem to send shivers up his spine.
"Well, well if it isn't Mr. Jones, my own personal archenemy; so Frederick, are you ready for our final showdown?" Mr. Steele asked.
"I am Mr. Steele, and when I'm finished, you won't be bothering anyone any more, especially any warlocks like myself or Vincent Van Ghoul" Fred replied.
"Believe me Frederick, I will be haunting you to the end of your days, and you will never ever escape me" Mr. Steele countered.
"Well we'll just see about that Mr. Steele" Fred said as he took hold of his amulet; the magical device's energy soon grew as the emerald in the middle of the trinket began glowing a bright and brilliant green. Soon the magic of the device caused the sinister warlock Mr. Steele to back up into the hallway, but he was prepared for this and began summoning his own magic to try and back Fred up, which seemed to be succeeding for a while.
"So Mr. Jones, it appears that my magic is too much for you huh?" Mr. Steele asked, laughing almost demonically as he spoke.
"Not a chance you creep, my magic is more then powerful enough to defeat you" Fred replied, trying to back the sinister sorcerer into a corner.
"Nonsense you fool, no sorcerer's magic is powerful enough to defeat me, the all powerful Jonathan Steele!" the evil warlock declared, while still being backed up towards the corridor wall.
"My magic may not be enough to defeat you by itself Steele, but when you put together my magic and the assistance of my friends, we're more then capable enough to defeat you, now gang!" Fred bellowed.
Suddenly Fred was joined by Daphne and Velma who came out of their hiding places, then a few moments later the Hex Girls came out from their hiding spots to join the blond young adult, finally Shaggy and Scooby popped out from their hiding spots to join the gang, which unnerved the usual sinister villain.
"Blasted meddlers, you tricked me; I thought I was dealing with just one of you, not eight of you" Mr. Steele said, backing up against the wall as he spoke, except for the fact that he ran out of room and saw that he had backed himself into a corner.
"Mr. Steele, you should have known when you tried to capture us that when you deal with one member of Mystery Inc., you have to deal with all of us" Daphne replied.
Jonathan Steele was now in serious trouble, he had underestimated the team of sleuths and Fred in particular, and now that he had literally backed himself into a corner, he realized that even though he was a powerful warlock and an evil one at that, and that he could make himself disappear in order to avoid capture, he was too nervous and couldn't do anything to save himself, which meant that Scooby and company could finally capture him and end the mystery once and for all.
"All right Mr. Steele, time for this little magic show to end" Fred said as he activated his amulet yet again, only this time he pointed the amulet at Mr. Steele and soon its magical energy materialized a net, which unfortunately for the sinister warlock managed to trap him, limiting his mobility and sealing the mystery in Salem for good.
"Good going gang, we got him!" Fred declared proudly.
"But Freddie, we didn't do anything, you were the bait and lured him into a trap" Daphne said, quickly correcting him.
"Actually you guys did, you helped rescue me when this fiend captured me, you jumped out at exactly the right time to confuse him; overall you guys helped a lot on this mystery, and I couldn't have done it without all of you" Fred replied, looking over at Daphne as he spoke.
"Thanks Freddie, and we're always happy to help, especially when you're in danger" the red head remarked, before taking the young warlock's arm and kissing him on the cheek.
"You're welcome Daph, and thanks for the kiss" Fred said, blushing a little as he spoke.
"No problem Freddie, and I was glad to provide it" Daphne replied.
"So Fred, what are we going to do with this sorcerer now that he's been captured?" Thorn asked.
"Simple Thorn, we'll just take him out to the Mystery Machine and drive him over to the Salem Police Department, I'm sure they'll be interested in what he's been up to the last few days" Fred explained.
With that, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby, along with Thorn, Dusk and Luna began walking through the house, towards the front door and that much closer to Mr. Steele's final reward: a spot in a Salem, Massachusetts jail cell. Having magical powers had its benefits, and in this case Fred was able to use his amulet to propel the net bound Mr. Steele a few feet in the air, after all even though he was captured, the young warlock figured his foe could have a little fun before his incarceration and what better way to have fun, then to fly.
"You know I'll sure be glad when we get out of this house; being chased by an evil warlock, having to deal with real monsters, and being locked in a cold, clammy dungeon are not my idea of spending time in a mansion, or spending time on vacation for that matter" Fred remarked.
"Right Freddie, and I can sure agree with that" Daphne replied.
After a few minutes the team of sleuths and their captive found their way to the front room of the mansion, which oddly enough seemed to be more pleasant now that the group's villainous foe had been captured. However, that wasn't going to be the last of the group's surprises during the mystery, in fact there was one more important surprise to come and this one was going to be a doozy, and would change Fred Jones' life and outlook on life forever.
Author's Notes: Well, I lied; I decided to make Chapter 11 a short one so I could properly write the story's climax and outcome, as well as the mystery behind the amulet and what will happen to Mr. Steele and Fred after the mystery ends. Hopefully no one minds that, and enjoys my stories as usual.
