CHAPTER 5 - Commencement.
Royce, who was not particularly impressed with the appearance of Arthur and consequently slipped into the basement, cocked his head to one side and listened to the sound of the approaching vehicle. It sounded big, and powerful and accordingly caught his attention. He made his way to the grounds and stood beside Dana and Susan.
"What's going on now?" Susan whispered. The Princess shook her head.
"Hell as I know."
Royce observed the truck that was rapidly making it's way up the drive and wondered about the guy driving it. He figured he must have been a seasoned driver, the way he was making the tight turns and handling the rough bumps. The way Arthur was driving before you'd think he was on pins and needles. It was about that time that he noticed the small red car following more slowly and cautiously behind the truck. From what Royce could see, it had a female driver.
"Figures." He thought to himself.
The truck jammed the breaks and the door swung open. Royce almost fell over when the petite driver jumped down from the driver's seat.
"No way." He murmured. The driver was a girl, about his age, though with her height she could have been younger. She had dark chestnut hair and pale skin. She was wearing all black and her shirt had something written across the front. She stormed up to Arthur and glared at him fiercely. Royce couldn't tell what she was saying, but figured he'd go in for a closer look. It's not like she could see him or anything.
Broadway glared at Arthur and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She didn't see or even notice the ghosts situated right before her.
"Thanks for totally blowing us off back there! What's your deal? Are you anthrophobic or something - afraid of people? We could haven in really BIG shit and you didn't even give us a second glance!"
"I know and I'm sorry, but you have to understand that there is something very serious here that I needed to take care of immediately." Arthur protested putting his hands up in defense. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, right, I'm sorry! I see that you're doing some very important business here at this..this..dude, what the hell is this place anyway?! And what the hell are you wearing!"
"Broadway! Get back here, come on, let's go! Who cares?!" One of the other teens from the road was hanging out of the trucks window. He looked a bit older and had short black hair, which he spiked up in numerous long points.
"Fuck that Seth, I want to know why this guy was in such a hurry." Arthur gave her a stern look.
"Look, I'm sorry, I truly am, and I swear that I was going to go back to you once I was done here, but I needed to check something. But right now, you and your friends have to leave! Right away."
"Why? Are you hiding something?"
"Yes, alright, I'm hiding bodies. Thirteen to be exact, now will you go away. Obviously you don't need my help anymore so just continue on with what you were doing!" Suddenly, the area directly behind the girl flickered and Arthur witnessed the Torn Prince fade into sight and approach her. He shouldered his bat and gave Arthur a "Do something about it" look. Panicking, Arthur grabbed Broadway by the shoulders and pushed her, a little rougher than he intended, away from the ghost. He glared at Arthur.
"I wasn't going to do anything, nerd." He mumbled. Broadway fumed with anger and slung her fist at Arthur, catching him hard in the stomach. All hell started to break loose as the others stormed out of the cars and ran towards their sister. Arthur reeled in pain and caught his breath; the girl had a nice punch. Royce grinned and chuckled. He wasn't expecting THAT to happen. He found himself surrounded by people in what seemed to be two seconds. Jean tossed a look at Royce.
"Get moving Royce."
"I just wanted a better look-"
"Shoo!" He scowled and flickered out of sight.
Seth was the first to reach Arthur and gave him a hard shove. Jean had to think of something fast, she didn't want any more violence here. She glanced from Arthur to Dennis and back to Arthur and did the first thing that came to her mind. She sang the lullaby. Almost immediately, all the fighting stopped and the teens looked to where the song was coming from. When it was silent for a moment, she spoke.
"Settle down! There's not to be any more fighting here!?"
"Who said that?" The oldest girl said nervously.
"My husband Arthur can tell you." She looked warily at he anxious man before her. Mallory raised an eyebrow.
"Is this a joke?" Arthur cleared his throat audibly and pondered how prey tell he was going to explain his situation to an angry bunch of teenagers.
"Well..uh, that, the person speaking is my wife, Jean. I came here t-to se if she was..alright." Zeke raised an eyebrow.
"Alright, then where is she?"
"See, that might be a little difficult to explain." Arthur paused and looked at Jean for support. She nodded slowly. "Well, you see..my wife is, that is to say she has been, well..Jean. Her name is Jean."
"That's nice, so where is she?" Zeke asked. Arthur began to get hot.
"Alright. This is going to sound crazy and you're probably not going to believe me, but my wife is dead. She died a year ago in a fire. The voice you're hearing is hers, she's trapped here and I came to see if I could help her pass over." There was a moment of silence before Luke spoke.
"You're fucked up, man."
"Yes, I am - very fucked up, now will you get the hell out of here?!" Arthur pleaded. Seth grabbed his younger brothers by the arms.
"Lets go now, this place and this dude gives me the willies." Broadway nodded.
"Yeah." They turned to approached their cars. Arthur let out a relieved sigh and grinned at Jean. As she reached for the door, Broadway felt the earth tremble and looked back towards the house.
"Did you guys feel that?"
~*~
Jean felt it and she also felt the terror rise in her throat. "Arthur..it's starting!"
"What's starting?"
"I never got the chance to tell you - why I've called you here! When Cyrus died he uttered a containment spell and trapped us here on the property until he crossed over. However, because he IS the architect of Basilious' machine he also sold his soul to Satan and therefore now has the power to defy death and come back to try again. He's going to try to bring the Ocularis to life again and once it begins we only have about five minutes MAX to get as far away from this house as possible before we're trapped forever and brought to Hell. We have to keep some of the other more violent ghosts in check too - if they kill anyone before they cross over, we'll all be brought to hell."
"That explains some things." Arthur muttered looking over at the three largest and most ominous looking spirits lingering near the back of the house. The Hammer, the Jackal and the Juggernaut. Jean shook her head and continued.
"Once I cross over, though, I'll never get he chance to speak or see you again and I needed to one more time - I know how selfish that is but you have to understand why I did it!" Jean spoke fast and fearfully. Arthur nodded and held her to his body again.
"Jean, I understand." There was a strange metal on metal sound as the ruins of the glass house began to come together slowly. One of the male ghosts pocketed a pack of playing cards and approached Jean and Arthur.
"Looks like it's finally starting. We'll, that son of a bitch isn't going to get me again!"
The invisible barrier that held he ghosts in place shimmered and Arthur began to make out the writing etched within it. He caught sight of the teens and waved at them.
"Get out of here! Now!" They stared back at him in disbelief, frozen in place. The Torso stuck his hand through the barrier and out into freedom. He smiled glanced back at Jean.
"Better get moving." And with that, he flickered out of existence. The house was taking form now and some of the walls had been restored. Wordlessly, a woman in a long velvet dress passes through the barrier and nodded at the others. Jean smiled back.
"Goodbye, Isabella." One by one, the ghosts escaped their prison. The Great Child clung to his mother's hand as they slipped through the divider and into freedom. Jean ushered the ghost of the First Born Son out the blockade, giving him a quick kiss on the forehead. He made a face and disappeared. The lumbering form of the Hammer was the next to slip through followed by a man dressed in early 20th century fashion. Arthur would never have guessed it was the Jackal until he tried to take a little bite out of Jean's shoulder. The Juggernaut grabbed him by the collar and shoved him out the wall. He glanced at her quickly.
"Get moving."
"I will, Breaker." Jean replied monotonously. Arthur noted with irritability that the group of kids had not moved. Broadway took a step towards the house.
"What the hell is happening!?" Dennis removed another pair of glasses from his jacket pocket ad threw them at her. They landed at her feet and she hesitantly placed them on her nose. What she saw floored her. There was a man and a woman standing next to Arthur and there was a thin wall of some sort in front of them. In the background by the rubble were three more people, though she couldn't make them out from where she was standing. She ran up to Arthur and gave Dennis and Jean a good look.
"You weren't kidding..this is amazing!"
"No we weren't. Are you satisfied now - can you leave?" Arthur snapped. She nodded slowly.
"Uh-huh." She looked again at the last three ghosts as they sprinted towards the barrier.
"Hurry up, we've only got about 3 minutes left!" One of the girls called to the other. She was wearing a bath towel and nothing more, Her friend was wearing a 1980's style prom dress and a tiara. She looked as though she was having trouble running in her high heels. They got to the wall and gave Broadway a quick glance before passing through. The girl in the towel turned back towards the house.
"Prince! Floor it! We have to move!" Broadway watched the third ghost with mild interest. He looked about her age, but something was very different. He looked as if he was from the 50's or something. He was almost regrettably making his way to the barrier. Dennis gave him a pat on the back.
"Looks' like it's time for you and her to part."
"Don't touch me." Was his only response. The ghost stepped up to the barrier and pressed his ands against it, only to be thrown back violently. He landed roughly and pushed himself up slowly. The towel girl frowned.
"What the hell is going on? Why can't he leave!?" Jean looked horrified.
"Because a part of him is still in the house." Broadway gave her a confused look.
"What's going on?"
"He has about 2 minutes to get his car out of the basement of that house before he's trapped in the spirit world forever and dragged to Hell." Dennis replied. Broadway looked at the ghost.
"Well, get her moving!"
"I can't!"
"Why the hell not! Oh, uselessness!" Broadway bolted for the quickly coming together house and picked her way through the broken metal and glass. The walls were almost all up. She heard the protests of Arthur and the others but ignored them. She was stopped when she felt something grab her arm. She was swung around fiercely and brought face to face to the male ghost.
Royce, who was not particularly impressed with the appearance of Arthur and consequently slipped into the basement, cocked his head to one side and listened to the sound of the approaching vehicle. It sounded big, and powerful and accordingly caught his attention. He made his way to the grounds and stood beside Dana and Susan.
"What's going on now?" Susan whispered. The Princess shook her head.
"Hell as I know."
Royce observed the truck that was rapidly making it's way up the drive and wondered about the guy driving it. He figured he must have been a seasoned driver, the way he was making the tight turns and handling the rough bumps. The way Arthur was driving before you'd think he was on pins and needles. It was about that time that he noticed the small red car following more slowly and cautiously behind the truck. From what Royce could see, it had a female driver.
"Figures." He thought to himself.
The truck jammed the breaks and the door swung open. Royce almost fell over when the petite driver jumped down from the driver's seat.
"No way." He murmured. The driver was a girl, about his age, though with her height she could have been younger. She had dark chestnut hair and pale skin. She was wearing all black and her shirt had something written across the front. She stormed up to Arthur and glared at him fiercely. Royce couldn't tell what she was saying, but figured he'd go in for a closer look. It's not like she could see him or anything.
Broadway glared at Arthur and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She didn't see or even notice the ghosts situated right before her.
"Thanks for totally blowing us off back there! What's your deal? Are you anthrophobic or something - afraid of people? We could haven in really BIG shit and you didn't even give us a second glance!"
"I know and I'm sorry, but you have to understand that there is something very serious here that I needed to take care of immediately." Arthur protested putting his hands up in defense. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, right, I'm sorry! I see that you're doing some very important business here at this..this..dude, what the hell is this place anyway?! And what the hell are you wearing!"
"Broadway! Get back here, come on, let's go! Who cares?!" One of the other teens from the road was hanging out of the trucks window. He looked a bit older and had short black hair, which he spiked up in numerous long points.
"Fuck that Seth, I want to know why this guy was in such a hurry." Arthur gave her a stern look.
"Look, I'm sorry, I truly am, and I swear that I was going to go back to you once I was done here, but I needed to check something. But right now, you and your friends have to leave! Right away."
"Why? Are you hiding something?"
"Yes, alright, I'm hiding bodies. Thirteen to be exact, now will you go away. Obviously you don't need my help anymore so just continue on with what you were doing!" Suddenly, the area directly behind the girl flickered and Arthur witnessed the Torn Prince fade into sight and approach her. He shouldered his bat and gave Arthur a "Do something about it" look. Panicking, Arthur grabbed Broadway by the shoulders and pushed her, a little rougher than he intended, away from the ghost. He glared at Arthur.
"I wasn't going to do anything, nerd." He mumbled. Broadway fumed with anger and slung her fist at Arthur, catching him hard in the stomach. All hell started to break loose as the others stormed out of the cars and ran towards their sister. Arthur reeled in pain and caught his breath; the girl had a nice punch. Royce grinned and chuckled. He wasn't expecting THAT to happen. He found himself surrounded by people in what seemed to be two seconds. Jean tossed a look at Royce.
"Get moving Royce."
"I just wanted a better look-"
"Shoo!" He scowled and flickered out of sight.
Seth was the first to reach Arthur and gave him a hard shove. Jean had to think of something fast, she didn't want any more violence here. She glanced from Arthur to Dennis and back to Arthur and did the first thing that came to her mind. She sang the lullaby. Almost immediately, all the fighting stopped and the teens looked to where the song was coming from. When it was silent for a moment, she spoke.
"Settle down! There's not to be any more fighting here!?"
"Who said that?" The oldest girl said nervously.
"My husband Arthur can tell you." She looked warily at he anxious man before her. Mallory raised an eyebrow.
"Is this a joke?" Arthur cleared his throat audibly and pondered how prey tell he was going to explain his situation to an angry bunch of teenagers.
"Well..uh, that, the person speaking is my wife, Jean. I came here t-to se if she was..alright." Zeke raised an eyebrow.
"Alright, then where is she?"
"See, that might be a little difficult to explain." Arthur paused and looked at Jean for support. She nodded slowly. "Well, you see..my wife is, that is to say she has been, well..Jean. Her name is Jean."
"That's nice, so where is she?" Zeke asked. Arthur began to get hot.
"Alright. This is going to sound crazy and you're probably not going to believe me, but my wife is dead. She died a year ago in a fire. The voice you're hearing is hers, she's trapped here and I came to see if I could help her pass over." There was a moment of silence before Luke spoke.
"You're fucked up, man."
"Yes, I am - very fucked up, now will you get the hell out of here?!" Arthur pleaded. Seth grabbed his younger brothers by the arms.
"Lets go now, this place and this dude gives me the willies." Broadway nodded.
"Yeah." They turned to approached their cars. Arthur let out a relieved sigh and grinned at Jean. As she reached for the door, Broadway felt the earth tremble and looked back towards the house.
"Did you guys feel that?"
~*~
Jean felt it and she also felt the terror rise in her throat. "Arthur..it's starting!"
"What's starting?"
"I never got the chance to tell you - why I've called you here! When Cyrus died he uttered a containment spell and trapped us here on the property until he crossed over. However, because he IS the architect of Basilious' machine he also sold his soul to Satan and therefore now has the power to defy death and come back to try again. He's going to try to bring the Ocularis to life again and once it begins we only have about five minutes MAX to get as far away from this house as possible before we're trapped forever and brought to Hell. We have to keep some of the other more violent ghosts in check too - if they kill anyone before they cross over, we'll all be brought to hell."
"That explains some things." Arthur muttered looking over at the three largest and most ominous looking spirits lingering near the back of the house. The Hammer, the Jackal and the Juggernaut. Jean shook her head and continued.
"Once I cross over, though, I'll never get he chance to speak or see you again and I needed to one more time - I know how selfish that is but you have to understand why I did it!" Jean spoke fast and fearfully. Arthur nodded and held her to his body again.
"Jean, I understand." There was a strange metal on metal sound as the ruins of the glass house began to come together slowly. One of the male ghosts pocketed a pack of playing cards and approached Jean and Arthur.
"Looks like it's finally starting. We'll, that son of a bitch isn't going to get me again!"
The invisible barrier that held he ghosts in place shimmered and Arthur began to make out the writing etched within it. He caught sight of the teens and waved at them.
"Get out of here! Now!" They stared back at him in disbelief, frozen in place. The Torso stuck his hand through the barrier and out into freedom. He smiled glanced back at Jean.
"Better get moving." And with that, he flickered out of existence. The house was taking form now and some of the walls had been restored. Wordlessly, a woman in a long velvet dress passes through the barrier and nodded at the others. Jean smiled back.
"Goodbye, Isabella." One by one, the ghosts escaped their prison. The Great Child clung to his mother's hand as they slipped through the divider and into freedom. Jean ushered the ghost of the First Born Son out the blockade, giving him a quick kiss on the forehead. He made a face and disappeared. The lumbering form of the Hammer was the next to slip through followed by a man dressed in early 20th century fashion. Arthur would never have guessed it was the Jackal until he tried to take a little bite out of Jean's shoulder. The Juggernaut grabbed him by the collar and shoved him out the wall. He glanced at her quickly.
"Get moving."
"I will, Breaker." Jean replied monotonously. Arthur noted with irritability that the group of kids had not moved. Broadway took a step towards the house.
"What the hell is happening!?" Dennis removed another pair of glasses from his jacket pocket ad threw them at her. They landed at her feet and she hesitantly placed them on her nose. What she saw floored her. There was a man and a woman standing next to Arthur and there was a thin wall of some sort in front of them. In the background by the rubble were three more people, though she couldn't make them out from where she was standing. She ran up to Arthur and gave Dennis and Jean a good look.
"You weren't kidding..this is amazing!"
"No we weren't. Are you satisfied now - can you leave?" Arthur snapped. She nodded slowly.
"Uh-huh." She looked again at the last three ghosts as they sprinted towards the barrier.
"Hurry up, we've only got about 3 minutes left!" One of the girls called to the other. She was wearing a bath towel and nothing more, Her friend was wearing a 1980's style prom dress and a tiara. She looked as though she was having trouble running in her high heels. They got to the wall and gave Broadway a quick glance before passing through. The girl in the towel turned back towards the house.
"Prince! Floor it! We have to move!" Broadway watched the third ghost with mild interest. He looked about her age, but something was very different. He looked as if he was from the 50's or something. He was almost regrettably making his way to the barrier. Dennis gave him a pat on the back.
"Looks' like it's time for you and her to part."
"Don't touch me." Was his only response. The ghost stepped up to the barrier and pressed his ands against it, only to be thrown back violently. He landed roughly and pushed himself up slowly. The towel girl frowned.
"What the hell is going on? Why can't he leave!?" Jean looked horrified.
"Because a part of him is still in the house." Broadway gave her a confused look.
"What's going on?"
"He has about 2 minutes to get his car out of the basement of that house before he's trapped in the spirit world forever and dragged to Hell." Dennis replied. Broadway looked at the ghost.
"Well, get her moving!"
"I can't!"
"Why the hell not! Oh, uselessness!" Broadway bolted for the quickly coming together house and picked her way through the broken metal and glass. The walls were almost all up. She heard the protests of Arthur and the others but ignored them. She was stopped when she felt something grab her arm. She was swung around fiercely and brought face to face to the male ghost.