Jack and Maddie Fenton looked at the chalkboard grimly. It was a mess of dimensional equations, linked with emotional force calculations, but it all led to one thing, one conclusion.
"So, the only way to contact the realm of ghosts..." Maddie murmured, "Is to offer some form of human sacrifice."
Jack nodded. "Remember how the portal almost worked, back in the day? Vlad was never the same after that." His wife nodded, realizing where he was going with that.
"He unknowingly sacrificed the life he knew. The person he was...died."
Jack nodded. "It's a shame it can't be voluntary. I wish it could, but the ghosts are formed from a desire to remain, a voluntary death would do nothing."
Maddie nodded. "So, how will we go about doing this?"
Jack was silent for a moment. "Are we willing to do whatever it takes?"
Maddie looked at her husband. "What do you mean?"
"Even with the sacrifice, it requires an immense amount of energy to stabilize the bridge. Enough to kill a person. If the on button was inside the stabilizing tunnel when it turned on..."
"The person who pressed the button would be electrocuted, killing them instantly. Providing the needed catalyst to form the bridge." Maddie finished.
She frowned. "But...all the permits we have are for building it in our basement, and we can't bring someone from the outside to press the button, that would be a whole other can of worms."
"That's why I want to know how far we're willing to go. Because there's someone I can think of with free access to the lab, with just enough awkwardness and curiosity to accidentally push a button on the inside of a faulty machine."
Maddie's heart clenched at the thought, but remained thoughtful. "Electrocution is unpredictable, right? If someone died in the presence of large amounts of ectoplasm, while their physical body still represented a viable host for the soul, is it possible for the ectoplasm to bond with the body, creating a form of...half-ghost?"
Jack realized what she was doing. "Yes, our evidence does have that as a possibility. In such a case, it would create the circumstances needed for opening the portal, while also allowing the sacrifice to remain alive." It was a flimsy argument, and they both knew it.
The pair came to a silent agreement, and blueprints were altered. Later, orchestrated experimental tests were designed to fail, and Danny and his friends were given no supervision in their basement the day the ghost portal was completed.
This represents my first real attempt to write horror. I'd appreciate any feedback people can offer in this regard.