Hey everyone. I'm so sorry this took so long to update. The past few months have been rather hectic for various reasons, and I don't expect it to change anytime soon. Unfortunately, I still can't promise I'll have a regular update schedule, but I will try to get at least one chapter a month. Thanks to everyone for having patience, and thanks to everyone who left a like or comment. Enjoy.
2:55 PM
"Dusk, you didn't have to do this," Thorn said as she and Dusk walked down the hallway, heading toward the basement, the former walking at a heightened pace and ahead of her friend.
"And you didn't have to volunteer yourself as bait, but that's what you did," Dusk replied as she quickened her pace and caught up to Thorn.
Thorn sighed and stopped as Dusk reached her. "I've already failed to keep you safe, and I can't let you or anyone else get hurt. That's why I must do this by myself." She looked Dusk in the eye. "Please, go back."
Dusk shook her head. "Thorn, that's stupid, and you know it."
Thorn shook her head and resumed walking, though Dusk remained where she stood. This is for the best. I'm protecting them. They'll be safe. Yet Thorn lowered her head and sighed as her pace slowed.
"Remember what happened last time you were in the basement by yourself?"
Thorn came to a stop. Ahhh! Guys, help me! Lady! Help me! Please! Thorn shook her head, but the cultist's desperate pleas continued to repeat in her mind like a nightmarish song stuck on a loop. I smiled. I fucking smiled.
"That won't happen again." Thorn felt a hand on her shoulder, snapping her from her thoughts, and turned to see Dusk at her side. "You promised me you'd keep me safe. Well, I promise to make sure you don't hurt anyone."
Mouth agape and eyes wide, Thorn stared at her friend. "But...uh," she stammered. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before slowly exhaling. She opened her eyes. "But what about my magic? What if I lose control, and you get hurt?" Thorn cautioned with a shudder.
"That's not gonna happen because I promised you I wouldn't let you hurt anyone," Dusk quickly replied with a small grin. "Besides, you can control your magic, so I don't have to worry about you accidentally hurting me."
Thorn was momentarily taken back by Dusk's faith in her, which was certainly more faith than Thorn had in herself. She turned and glanced at the palms of her trembling hands. Dusk believes in me. She glanced behind her and saw the doors that led to the lobby where Luna, Fred, and Brian waited. They're counting on me to lure the ghost upstairs; I can't fail them. Thorn turned back to Dusk, and she did her best to mask her fears and anxieties with a weak smile.
"You're right, we have each other's back," Thorn calmly replied. "We can do this."
"Yeah, we can!" Dusk cheered. "Now, let's catch this fucking ghost!"
Thorn chuckled at her friend's excited behavior, but as they resumed their trek to the basement, Thorn found her anxieties returning with each step. What if the cultists or the ghost are waiting for us? What Dusk and I get separated? What if…" Thorn grimaced and shook her head. Stop! Dusk and I can do this!
"Hey, we're here," Dusk said, nudging Thorn's arm with her elbow.
Thorn blinked a few times as she snapped out of her thoughts. She assessed her surroundings and found herself standing in front of the basement stairs. The vault-like door was still open, and Thorn stared into the darkness below, knowing that many threats lurked in the shadows. She trembled but took a step forward.
"Okay," Thorn said. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled. You can do this. She opened her eyes and took another step, putting her at the edge of the staircase. What if I can't control my magic? What if I hurt someone? What if I hurt Du… She shook her head and grunted as the negative thoughts returned with a vengeance.
"Thorn, you need me to go first?" Dusk asked from behind.
Thorn rubbed her head, and the thoughts went away, though the amount of sweat she felt alarmed her. She turned to Dusk and nodded.
Dusk drew her knife, and Thorn stepped aside so Dusk could take the lead. Dusk reached the first step and began her descent into the darkness.
"Wait!" Thorn gasped as she grabbed Dusk by her shoulder and pulled her back. "I need to go first."
"You sure?" Dusk asked. "I don't mind taking the lead."
Thorn nodded. "You shouldn't have to walk headfirst into danger. Not after I promised to protect you."
Dusk simply nodded in response and backtracked to the top of the staircase, allowing Thorn to pass her.
Thorn sighed as she reached for the railing and took a step down. She paused and dug out her phone from her purse. She used her phone as a makeshift flashlight and took another step down. Her heart pounded against her chest, beating faster with each descending step, and she could barely hold her phone and the railing due to her trembling hands. Don't use magic. Don't use magic. Don't use magic.
She reached the bottom of the stairs and sighed with relief. The light from upstairs faded, leaving her with only the dim light of her phone. She looked around the basement but only saw vague outlines of boxes and furniture.
"The ghost isn't here," Dusk whispered.
Despite standing right next to her, Thorn could barely see Dusk.
"Fred said to act like we're searching for the treasure," Thorn recalled. "So let's do that." She shined her light on the nearby wall. "We'll follow the wall until we find the yellow 'X' or the ghost appears."
"Okay," Dusk replied. "Um, do you sense any magic?"
Thorn flinched, taken back by the question. She looked around the basement, expecting to feel the "pull" that drew her into the basement the first time she came down here. She stood in the darkness waiting for something magic to happen, but after a minute or so, she sighed. "No," she answered, not sure if that was a good or bad sign.
"Okay, let's keep moving," Dusk whispered.
Staying next to the wall, Thorn and Dusk delved farther into the basement. Thorn watched every fleeting shadow cast by her phone and scanned the piles of boxes and furniture for anything suspicious. Yet, despite her vigilance, she saw neither the ghost nor the cultists, nor did she sense any magic.
"There's the yellow X," Thorn said after several minutes of walking.
"And no ghost," Dusk grunted.
Thorn patted the wall around the X but found nothing. Sighing, Thorn noticed the light from the hole in the ceiling and shivered. There were too many bad memories surrounding that area.
"We should see if anything is by the hole," Thorn suggested, though did little to hide her reluctance.
"Yeah, maybe that machine is still there," Dusk replied.
Thorn raised an eyebrow. "What machine?"
"I found this machine when we first tried trapping the ghost. It looked like a lawnmower, but it had a screen with a bunch of lines on it," Dusk explained. "When I messed with it, I got attacked by a cultist."
"So, that's what they're guarding," Thorn reasoned. "Or maybe that's how they're making the ghost."
"Either way, let's check it out," Dusk replied.
They ventured into the maze of boxes, crates, and covered pieces of furniture. They navigated the cramped spaces between with their phones, following the old set of tire tracks, and soon came upon the large clearing beneath the hole in the ceiling. The clearing remained unchanged since Thorn was last here; the bundle of sage was still in its spot, the table Dusk used to climb down still stood just beyond the streak of light coming from the hole above, and the mess of crushed and damaged boxes remained.
"Where's this machine?" Thorn asked.
"It's back here," Dusk answered as she passed Thorn. She continued past the table and hole in the ceiling before disappearing into the darkness.
Thorn quickly ran after Dusk and spotted her crouching in an open area not far beyond the light.
"Did you find something?" Thorn asked, shining her phone light at her friend.
"It's gone," Dusk replied. She pointed at the ground. "But there are more tire tracks."
Indeed, a set of dirt tire tracks meandered toward the far wall. They followed the new tracks, and Thorn felt uneasy as they passed several smashed boxes that looked like someone threw them. It didn't take long for them to reach the wall where the tracks turned right. Thorn shivered when she saw the large cabinet she used to pin the cultist to the wall. She shook her head as she recalled the man's pleas for help and her desire to kill him.
"Hey, the tracks stop here," Dusk said.
"Hmmm, oh, um, where?" Thorn asked, her previous thoughts dissipating.
"At this cabinet," Dusk answered.
"Oh, um, move the cabinet," Thorn suggested with as much calmness as she could muster.
Dusk nodded and then grabbed the cabinet. She grunted as she pulled the cabinet. Despite her efforts, she barely moved the cabinet an inch.
"Shit, this is heavy," Dusk panted. "Can I get some help?"
Thorn grabbed the cabinet, and they both pulled, trying their best to drag the cabinet. The cabinet scraped loudly against the floor, no doubt alerting anything in the vicinity to Dusk and Thorn's presence, as they inched it aside. After a few minutes, they moved the cabinet far enough that they could follow the tracks.
"Damn, I'm exhausted," Dusk groaned between quick breaths. "And now we gotta get the ghost to chase us."
Thorn stared at the cabinet for a moment before acknowledging Dusk. "This is the cabinet I almost killed the cultist with."
"Oh," Dusk gasped, looking over the cabinet.
There was an awkward silence as both girls looked at the cabinet.
Thorn shook her head. "Come one, let's go," she said, breaking the silence. She took the lead and followed the tracks through the narrow corridor between the wall and boxes. They reached the other side of the corridor and entered a small clearing.
"Hey, do you hear that?" Dusk whispered as she grabbed Thorn's to stop her from going any farther.
"What is it?" Thorn asked.
"I hear something," Dusk answered. She slowly walked over to a large dresser, crouching as she did. Thorn followed and dimmed the light on her phone.
"Do you hear it?" Dusk whispered.
"No, I don-" She leaned closer to the dresser. It was faint but unmistakable; Thorn could hear a beeping noise coming from somewhere just ahead of them.
"I bet that's the machine," Thorn said, frowning as she knew it meant the ghost and cultists were nearby.
"I know it is," Dusk eagerly replied. "Can you see it?"
Thorn peeked over the dresser. There were too many boxes and other items blocking her view, but she noticed something useful.
"There are two paths that lead to the noise," Thorn explained.
"Then we each take a path," Dusk said.
Thorn frowned. "We should stay together."
Dusk shook her head. "I want to, but something is weird. Nothing has shown up."
"I guess that is odd," Thorn conceded. She thought it over, realizing they never got this far into the basement, and then shuddered. "What if it's a trap?"
"That's what I'm thinking," Dusk replied. "And if we both go the same way, we'll get trapped."
"But if we go separately, we could also get trapped," Thorn quickly countered. She grunted. How the hell is being bait this difficult? Did this bullshit ever happen to Shaggy and Scooby?
"Hold up. One of us takes one path, and the other stays here and watches." Dusk said, snapping her finger as she spoke.
Thorn smiled. "And then we switch if we find nothing, or call the other if we find the machine."
Dusk nodded. "Or run if you see the ghost or cultists."
"Yeah," Thorn said. "Um, I guess I'll take the path on the right."
Dusk nodded and repositioned herself so she could get a better view of the area. With Dusk in position, Thorn crept around the dresser and came upon the two trails. She shined her light down the right trail and followed it.
The trail, or more accurately as Thorn painfully discovered, a space just large enough for a person to squeeze through, quickly became a claustrophobic nightmare as it narrowed. Boxes, crates, and various pieces of furniture poked and prodded her as she pushed her way through the tight space.
"Ow!" Thorn gasped as she banged her elbow on what looked like a nightstand. She rubbed her elbow for a moment before continuing. She needed to be thorough and make sure the trail didn't widen or lead somewhere important.
"Ugh, this isn't going anywhere," Thorn grunted as she accidentally knocked over some boxes, and they nearly fell on her. Sighing, she gave the area one last check and confirmed that there was nothing. As she turned around, her phone buzzed. She had one new text from Dusk.
Just saw someone. Going after them. Get back here.
"Dusk, are you crazy?" Thorn gasped. She ran, never once caring about the multiple things she bumped into, hit, or knocked over. The only thing on her mind was to find Dusk. Yet in her haste, she gave zero thought to the box she kicked.
Creeeaaak. Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Crash!
"Ah! No!" Thorn shouted as she tried pushing aside the massive cabinet that fell over and blocked her. She grunted, hitting the cabinet. "How the hell did this happen?" She looked around for a way to escape, but the stacks of boxes were too tall. Climbing over it wasn't an option either since the cabinet towered over her. Thorn hit the cabinet. "No!" She moved several broken boxes and then tried moving the cabinet again. The cabinet didn't budge. She peered around the cabinet and gasped upon seeing another cabinet leaning against the first, pinning it down.
"This can't be happening," Thorn gasped upon realizing that the cabinet trapped her. "Dusk, I'm trapped!" she shouted. No answer. "Dusk!"
"AHHHHH!"
Thorn froze, and her heart nearly skipped a beat upon hearing Dusk's terrified shout.
"Dusk! Where are you!" Thorn shouted.
She could hear commotion; there were shouts and screams, boxes fell, and something glass broke. Thorn frantically shook the cabinet in a futile attempt to free herself. More shouting. Tears fell down her face as the cabinet remained where it stood.
"Dusk! Just hold on a little bit longer. I'll be there. I promise you!" Thorn cried. She jumped, desperately trying to grab the top of the cabinet, but failed.
"Thorn! Help me!"
Thorn pounded the cabinet, unaware of the boxes shaking around her and the greenish glow enveloping her hand as her only focus was on getting to Dusk.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!"
And that one scream sent Thorn over the edge.
"Ugh, where'd he go?" Dusk muttered, pausing to look around the clearing at the end of the left path.
It wasn't the smart thing to do. In fact, it was among the dumbest things in a long line of stupid things Dusk had done. But she was bait, and she needed to lure the ghost, cultist, or whatever the figure she glimpsed poking its head around a stack of boxes watching her was. After texting Thorn to get back, Dusk went after the figure, who ran off. And now she lost the person in the maze of boxes, crates, furniture.
"Fuck!" Dusk shouted.
It was hopeless. Whoever she chased was gone. She groaned and turned back to find Thorn. But before she could get far, she stopped. The noise. It was louder and sounded like a hum. Dusk grinned. It was the machine she encountered earlier. She took a few steps toward the hum and found a large box. She tapped the box and discovered that it was deceivingly light. She pulled the box away and found a new path.
"The machine has to be over here," Dusk said to herself. She followed the new path, knife drawn in anticipation of what was undoubtedly waiting for her by the machine. She inched her way forward, her grip on her knife tightening with each step. She entered another small clearing. The hum grew louder, and Dusk's eyes widened upon seeing a lawnmower-shaped object less than thirty feet from her.
"Gotcha!" Dusk snickered as she ran to the machine. She paused. "Where are ya, ghosty?" Dusk called out into the darkness. Nothing. No ghosts or cultists.
Dusk sighed. "Okay," she shouted. "I'll just fuck with your, uh, whatever this is!"
She kicked the machine. The screen flickered, and the device beeped, but neither the ghost nor the cultists appeared. She grabbed the handlebar and pushed the device. The gray lines on the monitor shifted as she pushed the device. She didn't know what they meant, so she just rammed the deceive in a table stand.
"Hey ghost, I'm gonna break this!" she shouted, repeatedly ramming the device into the table stand.
Thud!
Dusk relinquished the device and turned toward where the box fell. "Where are you?" she mumbled, glaring into the darkness.
"GET OUT!"
Dusk shouted, blindly swinging her knife at the enraged phantom now floating over the machine. Of course, her knife passed harmlessly through the ghost. Dusk stumbled backward, narrowly avoiding the ghost's swipe. Make sure it follows you.
"That's the best you got?" Dusk mocked, backtracking to the pathway. "You're gonna have to do better than that if you don't want me breaking your fancy lawnmower." She noticed a lamp on a nearby box and threw it at the device. The lamp shattered, and the device emitted a loud beep.
"GET OUT!" the ghost shrieked as it lunged at Dusk.
Dusk sidestepped the ghost, which drifted to the other side of the clearing, allowing Dusk to lead it back to the basement stairs.
"You're a shitty ghost!" Dusk yelled, flipping the phantom off. The ghost floated toward her, and knowing the ghost was after her, she sprinted toward the pathway. She snickered, a smirk spreading across her face. Now I just need to get back to Thorn, and then we can lead it back upstairs and then… "OW!"
Dusk fell to the ground, dropping her knife. She tried to get up, but someone shoved her back down and pinned her to the ground with their knee.
"Get off of me!" Dusk grunted, struggled to free herself from her captor. "Ugh!" Her face hit the floor, and someone pulled her arms to her backside. She could see a tall, thin, hooded figure and the ghost. Including her captor, there were two people and the ghost. Her odds were not good.
"Do you really gotta rough her up like that?" the thin figure asked. He sounded like a younger male.
"This is the bitch that bit me!" the figure, a middle-aged-sounding man, holding her down grunted.
"You fucking deserved it," Dusk shouted. With a surge of anger, she repeatedly kicked her captor's back, the hard treads of her boots were sure to do some damage.
"Agh, get her fucking legs!" her captor shouted. The thin man quickly ran out of sight, and Dusk felt him grab her legs and hold them down.
"You got the rope?" her captor asked.
Dusk gasped, and panic set in. "Thorn! Help!" she screamed as loudly as she could.
"Shut up!" her captor yelled, and he wrapped the rope around Dusk's wrists.
Dusk grunted and struggled against her captors, trying everything in her power to escape, but they were too strong.
"AHHHHH" Dusk screamed as the abrasive rope scratched her when it tightened around her wrists.
"Will you shut up and quit squirming!" the older captor yelled.
"NO! Fuck you!" Dusk shouted.
The older captor grunted and further tightened the rope, causing Dusk to wince and squirm from the pain. She couldn't move her arms, making it impossible to push the two hooded people off of her.
"Thorn! Tho-Hmpft!" Her captor gagged her with a piece of cloth.
"Alright," the older man said. "Let's take her to the back, then we'll figure out what to do with her.'
Dusk whimpered as the two hooded people got off of her and dragged her to her feet, though the older man held her by her bound hands. Where are they taking me? Are they gonna kill me? Dusk shook her head, doing her best to push away the fear that threatened to overwhelm her. No, I can escape. She let out a muffled grunt as she stomped on the man's foot, but what little hope Dusk had of escaping vanished since the man wore steel-toed boots, protecting him from Dusk's attack. The man bent her arm, and she cried.
"Are you two seeing this?"
Dusk looked for the source of the new voice but couldn't see anyone else. It was male and deeper than the two hooded men currently constraining her. She looked at the ghost, which remained unchanged.
"See what?" the older man asked.
"That light," the unknown person said. Dusk noticed that the ghost's mouth didn't move.
"I don't see no li-huh?" the older man gasped.
Dusk turned to the right and saw a green light glowing behind several large stacks of boxes and furniture.
"Oh fuck, it can't be," the thinner man trembled.
KA-BOOM!
Dusk gasped as she felt a massive blunt force collide with her, knocking her to the ground along with the hooded men. The cloth had partially dislodged itself, and Dusk spat it out. She groaned and blinked repeatedly, recovering from the bright, green light that precipitated the loud boom and shockwave. The hooded people groaned, and bits of debris rained down upon all of them. As her eyesight recovered, she gasped upon seeing the ghost on the ceiling. It wobbled but did not attack her before suddenly disappearing.
"Dusk!"
"Thorn!"
She heard her friend running through the debris and saw the light of a phone. Dusk rolled onto her back and smiled upon seeing her friend. Thorn quickly sat Dusk up and hugged her.
"Dusk, are you okay?" Thorn said, her voice full of concern.
"I'm a bit dazed but otherwise okay," Dusk replied. "Well, aside from my hands being tied up."
Thorn gasped, and a look of worry and anger spread across her face as she examined the rope. But to Dusk's concern, Thorn grew angrier, and her gaze became so fixated on the rope that Dusk wasn't sure if Thorn could even see her.
"Hey, I see my knife over there. Can you get it?" Dusk asked, motioning with her head in the direction of the knife.
Thorn didn't respond, and Dusk flinched when the rope suddenly snapped, freeing her.
Thorn blinked and shook her head, regaining a bit of calmness. "Sorry, um, your wrists are red but you'll be okay."
"Thanks," Dusk said, though she felt a bit uneasy. "That explosion. It was magic, wasn't it?"
Thorn gave a slight nod, trembling as she did. "I heard you screaming for help, and I couldn't get to you because I got trapped, and then…"
Dusk put her hand on her friend's shoulder, cutting her off. "Thorn, you saved me, and I'm not hurt. That's all that matters."
"Right," Thorn said with a nod.
The collective groans and movement around them startled both girls.
"Ah, that's her!" the younger hooded man yelped. He scrambled to his feet and ran toward the opposite wall, screaming.
"Fuck, this job ain't worth it!" the older hooded man gasped, and he too ran away. The unknown individual gasped and followed his hooded associates.
Dusk sat in confusion for a moment before a smirk spread across her face. "Thorn, they're afraid of you. We can chase them upstairs."
Dusk scrambled to her feet and grabbed her knife. She then ran in the direction the hooded men went with Thorn right behind her, though her friend hung her head low. Dusk sighed, knowing Thorn felt guilty for not being able to help Dusk, and as much as she wanted to comfort her, they had a job to do. "Thorn, if we catch these guys, they won't be able to hurt anyone again!"
Thorn sighed. "You're right, we need to stop them."
With renewed vigor, they continued their pursuit of the hooded people. They discovered another path that seemed to leave the massive piles of boxes and furniture and heard the hooded people running.
"Ha, this sure as hell beats being bait!" Dusk cheered.
"Yeah, I guess," Thorn replied as they escaped the maze of boxes and furniture.
Up ahead, Dusk could see the outline of a person. A very large person. He was holding something large. And she was catching up with him.
"Keep running assholes!" Dusk shouted, brandishing her knife.
The man turned.
"GET OUT!" the ghost shrieked as it materialized out of nowhere.
Dusk and Thorn gasped, and they quickly turned to avoid colliding with the enraged ghost. It turned to Dusk and lunged at her. Dusk dropped to the floor, and the ghost missed and floated past her. She quickly got to her feet as the ghost repositioned itself. It shrieked and charged her faster than she anticipated, leaving her with no time to react.
Dusk gasped when someone pulled her aside, which caused the ghost to miss her.
"I got you," Thorn said.
"Thanks," Dusk replied.
The ghost let out one last bone-chilling wail before disappearing right before their eyes.
"Where'd it go?" Thorn asked.
"Who cares!" Dusk said. She pointed to the stairs. "They're getting away!"
Heavy and frantic footsteps shook the stairway, and the two girls ran as fast as they could to catch up. Dusk nearly skidded into the wall when she finally reached the staircase. But to her dismay, there was no sign of the hooded men.
"Fuck, they got away!" Dusk shouted. She hurried to the top of the stairs. No hooded people.
Thorn reached the top of the stairs. "Anything?" she asked.
"No," Dusk grumbled, kicking the floor. "Ugh, they probably ran out the back door."
"AHHH!"
Both girls looked down the hall toward the lobby.
"I don't think they ran out the back door," Thorn said with a smirk before they ran down the hallway to the lobby.