The palace corridors were barely lit. We pushed onward until there was an abrupt thud. Cleo had collapsed.

Deuce rushed to his ghoulfriend, unconscious in Nefera's body. His voice was panicked. "Cleo!"

Venus shushed the Gorgon. "Keep it down!"

Toralei glared at the couple, her green eyes bright. "Why would she just faint?"

"I did the same thing, remember?" I said. "It's the body. She's not used to it."

The werecat's tail twitched irritably and she fixed her ponytail. "Just carry her, Deuce. We can't let her slow us down."

"I found it." Twyla's small figure sprang out from the shadows.

Venus grinned. "Great." She turned to the rest of us. "Let's go."

Deuce had Cleo in his arms and we followed Twyla down the hall. It was a few minutes before we reached an illuminated wide, dark door.

"This is it," Twyla said. "This is where the Queen's law enforcement unit makes all its plans."

"We just need to destroy any information they have of us," Venus said. She reached a thorny hand out to the doorknob, only to realize it was locked.

Twyla perked up. "I got this." The Boogieman's daughter vanished from sight, and the door swung open the next second. She gave a wry smile. "Come on in."

They took cautious steps inside and Deuce set Cleo down. He seemed extremely concerned for her, and I was glad he treated her the same way he normally would, even if she was in the wrong body. I looked down at myself and sighed. Both of us were in the wrong body, and I'd rather it be me in Nefera's and not Cleo. She had a boyfriend who deserved to have her where she belonged.

I let out a sigh and moved toward the silver doors, only to trip over my ankles and land flat on my face a second later. The others whipped their gazes toward me.

I bit my lip and gave a small, abashed grinned. "I'm fine." Their expressions softened, and they scoured the room's file cabinets for any information regarding our group. I managed to get on my knees before I ducked forward, my head searing with pain. I knew I was clumsy, but why did a headache plan on harassing me now?

A strained gasp fell from my lips and I grasped at my head as my mind throbbed. I didn't think I made enough noise for the others to notice me until Twyla's shadowy form appeared knelt down at my side.

Her bangs swept across her widening mauve eyes. "Cleo, er, Frankie, are you okay?"

Twyla's words were like trying to hear a whisper in a crowd. My limbs felt like led, and I felt myself sway with the weight. Knife-like pangs carved mental incisions into my head while I tried to form a coherent thought. The pain was reminiscent to the headaches I had after I woke up from a dream relating to Whisp. But this pain was stronger, like when I was last at the palace and taken to the dungeon. It felt like a siren blaring within my skull as it burned.

Did I set something off? Did I trigger something inside me? The conclusion came to me faster than I anticipated, but the pain prevented me from forming the thought straight away.

"Um..." Twyla warily reached out a gray hand. "You sure you're okay?"

I staggeringly stood, the pain gradually wafting away like smoke. A mad smile spread across my face.

Twyla grimaced. "Yeah, you're not okay."

I was on my feet and out the door before Twyla could get another word out. The ache dissipated and, once the futile calls for my name faded, all I could hear was the steady thumping of my shoes on the marble floor. I felt possessed by this drive, this impulse to move forward and get to the bottom of this.

I was still at a full sprint by the time I made it to the end of the hallway, the imposing palace foyer just in sight.

"What are you doing out here?"

My soles squeaked as I skidded to a halt at the end of the corridor. The voice came again, and I stiffened when I recognized it.

"I know you're out there," Clawdeen called. I could imagine her arms crossed and an annoyed scowl etched onto her face. My feet were glued to the floor and I held my breath as if the ocean had suddenly flooded the air.

"Are you sure she's here?" a small voice asked the werewolf. Skelita? "It doesn't make sense that she'd be out this late." I managed a small smile—that was definitely Skelita's voice.

If I could see her, Clawdeen would be rolling her eyes. "Trust me, Skelita, she's out here. She's making it really obvious!"

Clawdeen was a werewolf, and she probably caught my scent.

"Stop trying to hide," she said. "Come out."

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I'd have to reveal myself sometime. I managed a few confident steps toward the end of the hall.

"About time you showed yourself." I stopped short. I couldn't even see Clawdeen from where I stood. How could she see me?

Chains rattled softly. "Sorry," an airy voice came. "I wasn't spying!"

I peered past the corner to see a sleepy Skelita standing beside a tired Clawdeen, her arms crossed as she scowled at the pale figure floating in front of her. I pivoted back into the hall and leaned against the wall, breathing a quick sigh of relief. Spectra was the one Clawdeen was talking about, not me. I didn't know where I needed to go, but I knew I needed to get through the foyer.

Spectra's voice was timid. "I heard you two talking about going somewhere tomorrow..?"

Skelita seemed eager to respond. "Oh, yes. Catty Noir is having a concert tomorrow."

I imagined Spectra drawing back. "In the city?"

Clawdeen let out a huff. "You seem surprised. I thought you'd know already."

"Of corpse I did," Spectra said, feigning confidence. "I'm just still surprised. She hasn't been anywhere near the city since Monster High—"

"Crashed," Clawdeen finished. "I know. It's a pretty big deal. Why haven't you put it in The Gory Gazette yet?"

Spectra sounded more like she was talking to herself, "Now I have to take Porter there."

Clawdeen giggled. "Porter's coming?"

"He's just visiting," Spectra said shyly. "I don't know how long."

"Aww..."

"Stop it."

"The concert begins at noon," Skelita cut in. "You must already know that Catty doesn't do night concerts as much as she used to."

"Yeah, yeah," Spectra dismissed absentmindedly.

I could tell she had floated off when Clawdeen sighed and said, "I'll see you tomorrow, Skelita."

I heard pairs of heels clicking on the marble floor, and I waited until I couldn't hear them anymore. I glanced out the corridor: no one there. Carefully, I took a couple steps into the entryway. I looked to my right to see the intimidating palace doors, and my feet moved toward them like a magnet to metal. I knew I needed to go through them. I reached my hands out to push the doors open when a pale glow abruptly blocked my way.

"Cleo?" Spectra stood directly in front of me, her eyes wide. "I thought Frankie sent you to the dungeon. How'd you escape?"

I sighed. Right when I had confessed the truth of my identity to the rebels, others still didn't know. I wasn't going to be with Spectra for long and it was too risky to tell her, of all monsters. But now I had to find a way to get past her. "I'm just looking for something. Now if you'll excuse me..." I moved toward the door, but she didn't budge.

Her blue irises seemed to glow brighter. "If you're looking for something, I'm your ghoul."

I stepped back. "I thought you worked for the Queen."

Spectra scoffed and flipped back her long violet hair. "I run a blog, Cleo. I only work for the satisfaction of my readers."

I was reluctant to go along with her at first, but with the genuine look she was giving me, I gave in. "Okay, sure."

A mischievous grin painted itself onto Spectra's face. She darted forward and grabbed my wrist. I yelped the second she pulled me toward her. Next thing I knew, I was on the other side of the doors, immediately outside the palace. I looked down at where Spectra had held my wrist. "H-how..?"

"I had to improve my ghost powers sometime," she stated plainly. Then her grin returned. "Come on! I know the perfect place to look for things!" She glided away and I had to run to keep up with her.

"Here we are!"

I slowed to a stop and looked to where Spectra was referring to. A small, rickety wooden building drowning in greenery stood on the untamed grass of the palace grounds. I was clawing at the door for a knob before I had realized I what I was doing. Was I getting closer?

Spectra hovered to my side. "Here." She grabbed my wrist again and I was whisked across the solid surface. The inside of the shed wasn't much better, full of dirt and dust. Not to mention completely empty.

I was abruptly jerked forward, and I glanced down to see that Spectra's translucent hand still encircled my wrist. She dragged me toward the wall in front of us before I could protest, and I expected to be phased behind the shed. Instead, I saw a long, concrete hallway illuminated by flickering fluorescent lights. I blinked. Was this right? I looked over my shoulder and saw the same wooden wall from inside the building. This was a hidden passageway.

Spectra had released her grip on my wrist and drifted ahead. "Follow me."

She swiveled to a hall down the right when I called out to her, and my breath was shallow from running, "Slow down!"

Spectra didn't bother looking back, and when she stopped I almost ran into her. I bent down and rested my hands on knees, panting softly. I glanced over at the ghost ghoul floating beside me, who was staring ahead with wonder. I stood up straight and saw just what she was gazing at: a white-walled room filled with ceiling-high shelves from left to right stuffed with an immensity of artifacts ranging from gold to wood, from dull to so detailed you would need a magnifying glass to glimpse each one. I was in awe as I walked between the shelves.

"This room's full of ancient relics," Spectra commented, phasing through the shelf to speak directly to me.

I peered at the words inscribed on a silver bell on the shelf. "'Ancient relics', huh?" I remembered Jackson had found a book on ancient relics when we had visited the ruins of Monster High. I doubted the book had all these listed in there.

A glint of gold caught my eye. I walked to the end of the aisle and looked up the shelves against the wall. There it was: a little gold statue. It appeared to be of a tiny man wrangling a pair of intertwined snakes. I squinted. Writing was crudely etched onto almost every relic on these shelves.

"Who would even think of writing on these?" I thought aloud. These were all so beautiful. However, I was curious as to what was scrawled onto the snake man. I grabbed my wrist and yanked. I giggled sheepishly when nothing had happened. So instead I took a deep breath, got onto my tiptoes and reached. My fingers were barely grasping at the golden figurine when I heard a pained hiss. I glanced around. "Spectra?"

"Over here," her light voice came. I abandoned my pursuit for the artifact and followed the sound of her voice, arriving at the other side of the room. Her pale frame reflected off the metallic door she hovered in front of. Spectra nervously clutched her palm. "I was trying to phase through this door, but it didn't work. Again." She looked downcast. "I guess I'll just have to use the keycard instead." She sighed and begrudgingly pulled out a black card from a pocket in her nightgown. She was about to swipe it into the metal slot until a thought occurred to me.

"Why didn't you just use the key card in the first place?" I placed my hands on my hips once the realization came. "Are you not supposed to be here?"

"Not technically, no." She waved the card in the air. "This is the Queen's, but I really want to find out what's behind that door." Then she muttered to herself, "What's so important that I can't phase through the door to see it?"

"But Spectra—!" By the time I had made it to her side, she had swiped the black card through the scanner and a small light flickered green. Then the door opened inward as if welcoming us to a party.

Spectra squealed with excitement. "Ooh, this is going to be great! I can't wait to see what the Queen's hiding in here! But first..." She darted away instantly, and I chased after her until we made it out the room and down the corridor.

A lone chrome door resembling the other one stood at its end. Spectra swiped the key card and it opened just like its predecessor. She glided inside and I tentatively followed her lucent figure into the dark.

"I saw the Queen go into the other room, so I bet whatever's in there is way more interesting than what's over here," the ghost ghoul said giddily. "Gotta save the juiciest bits for last." Then she wrinkled her nose. "But it really stinks in here."

I shook my head, the only thing visible being Spectra herself. "If you're not supposed to be sneaking around then you—" I was cut off when my foot hit a solid lump, and I almost tripped. I tried dodging it but my shoes collided with more of the same dense object as before. I was growing frustrated. "What is this?"

"Here." Spectra took out her iCoffin and shined a light on where I stood. Her excited expression warped into horror. I looked down and immediately retracted back.

"Oh my ghoul..."

Bodies. Dry, pale, dead bodies were strewn at my feet. Spectra waved the light across the room, spotlighting more corpses about the floor and highlighting an entire pile of bodies stacked as nonchalantly as autumn leaves. I was made of dead body parts, so the sight horrified me much more than it disgusted me. Cleo de Nile's body felt like retching, though, and I noticed Spectra's face turn a shade of green.

Her voice wavered and her iCoffin shook in her hand. "This is where they keep them when they're done. The vampires... They sucked them all dry."

My voice was barely above a whisper. "The vampires?" I reluctantly took a couple steps forward and, sure enough, there were small two-holed punctures rooted onto each corpse's neck. "The vampires working for the Queen... killed... all of these monsters?" When I looked closer I noticed most of them had wings or scales or something about them that made them stand out. Each of them was different—like some sick collection. Now I felt like throwing up. "But what about Valentine?" I managed to say as my stomach did backflips. "Doesn't he..." My throat clogged with dread.

Spectra's widened eyes were glued to the scene before her. She stiffly shook her head. "No. Not anymore... This is his doing too."

I gulped and my breaths quickened.

This is what normies were so afraid of.

"O-okay..." Spectra said shakily. "Maybe this won't go on my blog..."

We rushed out of there, the door slamming behind us.

It was difficult, but I tried to put the gruesome scene behind me. "Spectra," I said. "There's something I want to get from the other room. Can you help me reach it?"

The ghost looked a bit shaky, but she nodded and glided ahead. When we made it to the relic room I led her to the shelf and pointed at the golden statue.

Spectra grinned when she saw it. "This idol is my favorite." She hovered up and grabbed it. "Ka means life-force."

I looked up at her questioningly as she handed me the golden figurine. "'Ka'?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "You know, like a separable double." She waved her fingers in the air. "The soul's vital spark." She smiled teasingly and floated away.

I sighed and looked down at the idol, noticing the detail on the man's face and the entwined snakes held past his head like trophies. Then I peered at the writing etched onto it: Heka, the god of magic. Activates the Ka... Oh, that's what Spectra was talking about. I reread the inscription: Activates the Ka within a body, returning it to its rightful form.

I pursed my lips thoughtfully. So if Ka meant life-force, separable double, or vital spark then it would mean that this idol powers the body's Ka to bring it back where it originally belongs.

I almost dropped the idol when the realization hit.

"Cleo..." I thought aloud, my voice rising. "I can give her body back."

I almost ran out the room until I saw Spectra disappear into the first metallic door. I put the idol by the entrance and marched in after her.

Unlike the other room, the floor was empty and there was dim lighting. Spectra hovered a few feet away from the entryway in front of a small window. She stared at it curiously, and she didn't take her eyes off it when whispered to me, "Strange, isn't it? It's like she doesn't even know we're here."

"She?" I followed her gaze, and my breath caught in my throat. Past the glass was a ghoul humming peacefully in the kitchen of what appeared to be a mock apartment room. Her pink and blue hair was sloppily tied back as she stirred batter in a bowl, her pale pink arms already covered in splatters of it. She was barefoot and wore a black apron over a simple purple dress. Witnessing the scene before me, I would've never suspected she was a genie.

Spectra glanced over her shoulder. "You remember Whisp, right?"

I nodded, grinning slightly to myself. She had no idea. I reached out and tapped on the window. Whisp looked up for a moment but quickly resumed mixing. I placed my palms on the glass. "It's one-way. All she sees is her reflection."

Spectra grinned. "Not for long." She grabbed my wrist and we were on the other side in a split-second. Unfortunately, the first thing that greeted me was another searing pain through my mind, and I hastened to ignore it.

Whisp had her back to us as she hummed the tune to a Casta Fierce song. When she caught sight of us her blue eyes widened. "Oh." She frowned in confusion. "I wasn't expecting visitors."

"Visitors?" I reiterated.

Whisp smiled apologetically. "It's just getting late and..." She sighed and clapped her hands together. "Well, maybe you can stay. I was just in the middle of making dessert. I suppose I could share." The genie beamed before scuttling deeper into the kitchen. "You two are going to have to wait a while, though. And you can't stay long," she called. "I have to wake up early tomorrow."

I walked into the kitchen as Spectra drifted to the living room. I ran my hand across the black granite countertop. "What do you need to wake up so early for?"

Whisp scoffed and rose from behind the island. "School, of corpse." She waved a spatula at me. "You have to wake up early, too, Cleo. You don't want to be tardy." She rolled her eyes amicably. "It's not like you'd want detention with Mr. Hack."

Cleo? But Whisp was the one who got me trapped in her body in the first place. She should know who I was. That and, "Mister... Hack..?"

Whisp giggled. "How long has he been teaching at Monster High, anyway?"

"I... I wouldn't know," I responded charily. I looked over my shoulder to see Spectra attempting to peel back a bright yellow curtain. When it wouldn't budge, the ghost simply phased her face through so that she could see the window. She edged back.

Her brows furrowed in confusion. "I didn't think I was out that long..."

"What's up?" I asked, somewhat relieved to stray away from the misapprehensive genie.

Spectra pointed a translucent finger toward the curtain. "It's day."

"Well of corpse," Whisp remarked suddenly as she strolled into the living room. "When else would the drapes open?"

"They open automatically?" I asked.

"But it's day," Spectra cut in before Whisp could respond. "It's day now."

The genie shook her head and pointed her spatula at a clock on the wall. "It's only seven o'clock at night."

"It was well past midnight when Cleo and I came out here," the violet-haired ghoul argued. "It shouldn't be any more than four in the morning."

Whisp narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. "If that's the case, then I'm going to have to ask you two to leave. I have school tomorrow." She jutted her spatula out towards a door by a mirror, the one-way glass Spectra and I passed through. After leaving the spatula in the kitchen, the genie moved to stand by the mirror, her foot tapping impatiently. Spectra grudgingly glided beside me as we made our way to the door.

"Sorry I couldn't share dessert," Whisp said quietly. She reached for the doorknob, and when she touched it, a spark flew off her finger and the next second she crumpled to the floor.

"Whisp!" I fell to her side, bewildered. I heard a whooshing sound but I ignored it.

Spectra hovered to my side and gestured behind me. "The curtains opened."

I glanced over my shoulder and saw a sunny meadow past the windowpane. It looked so real, but I could already tell it was fake. There wasn't a meadow anywhere near the palace; the Queen had the land around the city destroyed. Whisp stirred slightly, and her eyes sluggishly opened. She blinked absentmindedly before smiling at us.

"Hi, ghouls." She rose to her feet, and I stood beside her. She moved to the kitchen. "It's nice that you're here and all but, honestly, I feel like I have enough of you two back at school." She giggled. "Spectra the gossip and Cleo the princess."

I approached the kitchen tentatively. "You went to school already?"

"Well yes," Whisp scoffed and pointed at the clock, its hands in different directions than before. "It's just four o'clock. I came back just now. I have no idea why you two decided on following me, though. Need help with homework?"

"I don't think a delusional ghoul is a juicy story for my blog," Spectra murmured dryly. There was urgency in her eyes. "We should leave."

I ignored Spectra and brought my attention back to Whisp. "What about dessert?"

"Dessert?" Whisp let out a laugh. "It's not even dinner time yet. If you want to wait that long, be my guest."

Spectra sighed loudly before languidly drifting around the room. My gaze swept about the kitchen for evidence of her cooking but the entire place was spotless as if it had reset itself. "Uh, Whisp," I asked with caution. "What's today's date?"

She raised an eyebrow as she moved into the living room and opened the coffee table drawer. "The thirteenth, Cleo. See?" She handed me a crumpled frog-themed calendar opened to September, specifically September the thirteenth, a Monday... five years ago. I grimaced. It almost pained me when I came to my conclusion. But Whisp couldn't be left in the dark like this. She had to know.

I gently set down the calendar. "Whisp... It's not the thirteenth of September. At least not outside your apartment."

She opened her mouth to speak but I raised a hand and motioned for her to sit down, and she sat on the couch below her with her arms crossed. I sat beside her.

"I need you to hear me out," I began steadily. "First, do you remember anything about..." I didn't know where to start. The amulet and charm? The blackmail? The body-swap? The school crashing down? Then it struck me. "Nefera?"

The genie leaned back. "Your sister? Why would I have anything to do with her?"

At this point, I felt like shouting that I wasn't Cleo but I held my tongue and continued. "You've talked, haven't you?"

Whisp's eyes were wide in bafflement for a moment. Then her gaze fell to her lap and she said quietly, "Y-yes. We have." Her forehead wrinkled with confusion.

"Do remember what she did? What she said?"

"I..." She bent over, her face contorted as if remembering a grim memory. Her voice was a harsh whisper, "She used me."

"Yes!" I almost leaped to my feet but composed myself when I noticed that Whisp had begun shaking. I was tentative to comfort her; I'd never seen someone react this way.

"This... isn't real," she rasped. Whisp cradled her head in her hands, and I instinctively reached out and pulled her shivering form into a hug.

I thought she had been returned to her lantern. What was she doing here? What did she know?

Whisp faced me with round eyes. "Frankie?"

I retracted myself. "Do you remember now?"

The genie nodded miserably and pulled her knees to her chest. "How long has it been?"

I exhaled deeply before answering. "Over five years."

She stiffened. "I can't imagine what's happened... I've been living the same imaginary day over and over." She pointed a quivering finger toward the 'door'. "The knob has been absorbing my magic power and redoing this day again and again..."

As much as I felt for Whisp, I didn't have time for this. I needed answers. I rose to my feet. "Spectra," I called aimlessly; she appeared at my side almost instantly. "We're leaving."

"Finally." The ghost grabbed my wrist and tugged me along until we phased out, my headache gone as if I had left it behind in the room.

Before she could drift away, I turned to her and stated firmly, "I need you to phase Whisp out of here and bring her to the front of the palace."

I darted off before she could respond, snatching the snake-man idol from the doorway. I ran out the relic room and down the hall, where I skidded to a halt. Spectra had gotten me through these walls. Then again, if the Queen could get through then there must be—

I caught sight of a loose plank in the wooden wall. Perfect. Then I'd make it to the shed door, which should presumably be easier to open from the inside. In a rush, I one-handedly detached the plank. Thoughts of the idol's outcome swarmed my mind, and I gripped it tighter. I had to do this.

It was long overdue.