Chapter 19: Ghost Stories!

Normal POV

After breakfast, everyone gathered around the TV to watch the pay per view marathon going on onscreen. It was five in the afternoon when the fuse blew, again, making the TV and all the other electronics go dark in the house.

"Please tell me you paid the electrical bill?" mumbled Alicia as she let a flame flicker above her finger. "Because the fuse in this house really seems faulty to me; this is like the third time the fuse blew this vacation."

"Like I said before girl: this is tropical storm season for ya!" said Amanda with a shrug as she flicked a flame of her own between her fingers. "Now . . . what should we do to entertain ourselves till the lights come on?"

"How about ghost stories everyone?" said Adam with a mischievous grin. "Best story gets next pick to where we should go here in Jamaica."

"Nice idea, but I think we should lay some ground rules." said Cody with a serious expression on his face.

"Dude, what fucking ground rules?" asked Adam in disbelief. "I'd say . . . anything goes. It's freaking ghost stories dammit! They're supposed to be scary."

"I'm going to agree with Adam on this one." said Ted with a shrug. "What ground rules could you possibly have for ghost stories? What? Are you afraid you may get nightmares from too many stories?"

"No . . ." said Cody with a sheepish look on his face. "It's just that . . . fine! If you want anything goes, then let it be anything goes. Who wants to go first? Because it's not going to be me!"

"Let me fella? I have a good one." said Sheamus as he crossed his arms.

"Well . . . the floor is yours. Go on ahead." said Kofi as he placed Monica's laptop on the coffee table.

"Much obliged." said Sheamus. "Back in Ireland, we have this little legend of a demon that goes around at night to steal the souls of people and feed on their empty bodies, whether they're bad, good, or just indifferent. Only one person has ever survived his attack. He was a good old human that just wanted a drink of ale. He walked over to his usual pub on this empty street one rainy night in Belfast, but he instantly noticed that something was amiss as soon as he turned the corner."

"What was wrong?" asked Monica as she combed her fingers through her short hair.

"The lights were out and the windows were absolutely cracked. The lad just thought that the lights were out because of the storm and that the window was damaged because of a good old bar fight, but . . . as he walked closer to the bar, he realized that the place was quiet . . . eerily quiet. Way to quiet for happy hour." said Sheamus as he lowered his voice. "When he walked by the window, the smell of blood overcame him. The rusty, metallic smell burnt his nose and all the lad could think of was that the people inside got into something a lot worse than a simple bar fight. The lad wrestled with the idea of either calling the cops or looking inside to see if everyone was alright. But then a second smell came across his nose, and it was absolutely horrid."

"Please don't describe the smell." said Layla as she scrunched up her nose. "Once you describe a smell for me, I can't help but think about it for a good few hours afterward."

"Sorry babe, but I'm describing it whether you like it or not." said Sheamus with a small smirk. "As I was saying . . . the smell was absolutely horrible, worse than Boogeyman's worms, worse than the smell that AJ and Dolph gave off after having being pooped on near New Year's, and absolutely worse than Henry and Show after a long match. The smell was basically a combination of rotting flash, trash, poop . . ."

"Dude . . . You're torturing your girlfriend here." said Randy with a chuckle as he pointed to Layla, whose face was scrunched up in disgust.

"Layla, are you okay?" asked Amanda as she raised an eyebrow.

"I probably won't be able to think about anything except for bad smells for the next few hours thanks to him." said Layla as she pointed to Sheamus.

"Sheamus . . . . How about you just get back to your story for your girlfriend's sake?" asked Adam as he tried to hold back his laughter.

"I think that's a good idea lad," said Sheamus as he shot an apologetic look at Layla. "Going back to the story, as the lad wrestled with the idea of going in or calling for help, he began to hear footsteps, and they weren't the human kind. They were loud, thunderous, and they got louder and louder with each step. The lad looked through the window to see a pair of light green eyes staring straight at him through the curtain that covered the inside of the window. The lad's first thought . . . run like hell. He managed to get halfway down the block when he heard glass breaking and bricks cracking and landing on the cobblestone street. The lad was afraid to turn around, but he did it anyway, and he instantly regretted it."

"What did he see?" asked Lita as she looked at Sheamus with an eyebrow raised.

"The most horrible creature he could ever imagine," said Sheamus as he looked around the group, making eye contact with every single one of them. "The creature had these craggily, stubby horns coming out of his head and wings that were black as night. Its green eyes shown through a mask of burnt leather and its teeth were black as it wings, but its fangs were as sharp as a vampire's own, maybe even sharper. The creature's sharp claws were already laced with the blood of his victims, and he was planning to add more. The lad was frozen with fear at the sight of the beast, but as soon as the beast took a step, he broke out of his shock and ran down the street. The lad couldn't here footsteps, but he heard loud wings flapping in the sky, and when he turned around he saw that the beast was up in the sky chasing him. And it was unlucky for the lad to have his favorite pub in an area filled with empty warehouses and broken homes; why the owner of the pub had his business there I have no idea."

"What happened next dude?" asked Ted as the story peaked his interest.

"The lad decided to run into one of the old warehouses, which used to be a saw mill. The lad quickly hid between a few logs and when he got settled in his hiding spot, the beast came in, crashing through some of the windows near the ceiling. The lad cowered in his spot, praying to any deity he could think off for his life, and basically, you can say his prayers were answered." said Sheamus with a shrug. "You see it was because he ran into the old saw mill warehouse that he was saved that night. The left over sawdust gave off a strong smell that covered his own; the creature eventually gave up his search after only a few minutes, but the lad stayed in his hiding spot till morning. When he walked out the building at the crack of dawn, his first instinct was to go back to the pub to see if any lives could be saved. But alas, his hope was in vain. He walked into the pub with a few officers to see every single person that was in the pub . . . . Was dead."

"No survivors?" asked Kaitlyn.

"No survivors," said Sheamus with a sigh. "Most of the people who were dead were people who the lad knew; from old high school buddies to people he always saw on the street every day and even a few old flames here and there. All of the bodies had claw marks and there were pools of blood everywhere. But the weirdest thing was the eyes."

"What about the eyes?" asked Adam as he raised an eyebrow.

"All of them were absolutely blank. The pupils in every single person's eyes were gone; all that was left was the white sclera. The lad couldn't take it anymore and walked over to the door, but before he could walk two feet, a drop of blood fell on his nose." said Sheamus as he wagged his fingers.

"He looked up didn't he?" asked Amanda as she shook her head.

"Hell yes he did," answered Sheamus as he crossed his arms. "When he looked up, all you can read on his face was horror. Up on the ceiling was the words 'The Soul Stealer' written in blood. And that is my story. Any questions?"

"Yeah . . . what happened to the 'Soul Stealer' after that night?" asked Kaitlyn as she crossed her arms.

"No one knows; after that night, he just disappeared like he never existed." answered Sheamus as he shrugged. "Okay; who wants to share their story next?"

"'Manda, Randy; you two remember Elizabeth Cain right?" asked Monica as she pointed at the two.

"Hell yeah, I do," answered Randy as he shook his head. "May her soul rest in peace; didn't get to live to see senior year."

"Who is Elizabeth Cain?" asked Ted as he raised an eyebrow.

"Well . . . back in high school, there was this girl in our grade named Elizabeth Cain. She was this shy, inverted girl, but all she wanted to do was fit in, but the popular kids in our school didn't want that to happen. They made sure she stayed an outcast, picking on her anyway they could because of her shyness and her parents' professions." said Amanda as she crossed her arms.

"What did they work as?" asked Layla as she slightly flinched as thunder rumbled in the sky.

"Her father worked at the morgue as a coroner and her mom worked at a funeral home as the person who prepares the bodies for wakes, viewings, and funerals. But, it was natural for them, almost comforting. You see, Elizabeth and her parents were all necromancers." answered Monica as she crossed her arms.

"Ah . . . the people that can talk with AND raise the dead," said Adam in understanding. "Were you three friends with Elizabeth?"

"Amanda and Monica were closer to Elizabeth than I was. They were all members of the school volleyball team." answered Randy as he pointed to the twins.

"Elizabeth also had an uncanny ability to tell who was supernatural or not. She found me and sis out during our first volleyball practice together. And then she found Randy out when he caught him red-handed, pun intended, snacking on a squirrel behind the gym after practice the same day." answered Amanda as she let out a small chuckle.

"Really dude? Squirrels? I didn't know you liked . . . vermin blood." said Ted as he scrunched up his nose.

"I was really exausted and desperate for blood that day." was all Randy said as he looked at the window, slightly embarrassed that his small secret got out.

"So . . . what happened to Elizabeth?" asked Layla as she raised an eyebrow.

"Amanda . . . you tell the story best. You explain it to them." said Randy as Monica nodded her head in agreement.

"Fine" mumbled Amanda with a shrug. "I guess I'm going to have to start from the beginning. It was a month before Halloween when it happened. Elizabeth had walked into the park late at night just to get some fresh air after she got into a little dispute with her parents. She noticed that there was no one in the park except for her, so . . . she decided to practice her powers, to improve on them. She walked over to a nearby pond and found a dead frog lying on the side. It was still in perfect condition, a telltale sign that the little critter only died recently. All she did was touch it with one finger and poof . . . the creature was up and jumping again. But then . . . all she heard next was a piercing scream, drowning out the ribbits from the now revived frog."

The wind began to howl outside, taking some of the wrestlers by surprise as the thunder and lightning started to pick up. Amanda was undisturbed by the noise as she continued her story.

"When she turned around, she saw Melanie Gomez and Marc Williamson, two of the popular kids and the worst offenders when it came to picking on poor Elizabeth. They called her a freak, a monster, someone that shouldn't even exist. Elizabeth tried to reason with them, she tried to explain herself, but they wouldn't listen. She took a step forward, they took a step back, she took another step forward, and they took two steps back. They just didn't want to be near her because they were so freaked out. They couldn't comprehend the situation, and so they ran. Elizabeth knew if that she didn't get them to understand that they would spill her secret, so she ran after them."

"Well . . . did she catch them?" asked Kelly as she began to weave her fingers together.

"Nope . . . ." said Amanda with a small nod of her head. "She chased them out of the park and onto the street. They ran block after block, but when they reached the neighborhood main street, things went from bad . . . to absolutely worse."

"What happened?" asked Cody, who didn't really look like he wanted to hear the answer.

"Well . . . Melanie and Marc were able to make it across the street unscathed, but Elizabeth was blindsided by an 18 wheeler. She didn't see it coming and she had no time to react. She was dragged for blocks and the driver never realized it." answered Amanda as she let out a small sigh. "By the time her body was able to break free from the truck, she was out in the outskirts of town near the forests. Luckily for her, there were some people there to help her out."

"My parents and I found her by the side of the road at the forest's edge when we finished hunting that night. She had already lost too much blood, but she somehow managed to hang on long enough for us to bring her home; she talked about what happened to her before the accident along the way, but the impact already scrambled her brain so much that it was practically all a blur. Her parents' were devastated. They told us to leave and we did, and that was the last time I saw Elizabeth." said Randy with a haunted look on his face.

"How did you guys fully know about what happened to Elizabeth before Randy found her?" asked Sheamus as he raised an eyebrow.

"Melanie and Marc; they began to talk about what they saw the next day at school, but no one believed them. They tried to plead their case to their friends, but they all thought they were going crazy, and eventually, their friends shunned them as well. Randy could easily tell that they were telling the truth, so I decided to take a peek in their minds to see what they were talking about. I saw everything from that night through their eyes." said Amanda as she did a small shrug.

"Elizabeth's funeral was three days after that night at the funeral home her mother worked at and our families went to pay our respects." said Randy as he gestured to himself and the twins. "We just never realized that the entire student body was going to be there too."

"Everyone was there except for Melanie and Marc. But that wasn't the weirdest part to me." said Amanda as she narrowed her eyes at no one by particular. "During the ceremony, our mother told me that she could feel that not everyone's thoughts were truthful. I decided to see this for myself, and I saw that she was right. All the popular kids weren't sad about Elizabeth's death; some were actually downright glad she was gone."

"Those damn bastards!" said Kofi with a scowl. "And you went to school with those people?"

"Sad to say it, but it's true." said Monica. "We just weren't prepared for what happened next on Halloween."

"What happened on Halloween?" asked Lita as she raised an eyebrow.

"Well; on Halloween night was the time of our school dance. Costumes were mandatory and everything seemed fine. . ." said Monica as she trailed off.

"And that's when I started to smell blood." said Randy with a nod of his head.

"Blood?" asked Layla as she scrunched up her nose once again.

"Yeah . . . I told Amanda and Monica about it and we traced the smell to outside of the gym. We slowly walked by the side of the building and that's when the biting and slurping sounds began to grow louder and louder." answered Randy as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Biting and slurping sounds?" Wade asked him in slight disbelief as he raised an eyebrow.

"Yep; we reached the back of the gym to see Elizabeth eating Marc's body. She was a zombie; her body already in mild decomposition as she ate the flesh off of Marc's neck. The look on his face already told us that he was dead. We were all so shocked that Elizabeth came back from the dead, that we never realized that she had already claimed a victim before Marc."

"Melanie?" suggested Cody as he crossed his arms.

"Her neck was completely torn open as she lay lifelessly on the ground. Her Bride of Frankenstein costume was drenched in her blood. Elizabeth let Marc's body just drop to the ground like he was just a sack of potatoes. She turned to us and we got a full view of her face. She'd already lost one eye and there were little maggots hanging out of different parts of her head. She stared at us for a long while before turning towards the two dead bodies strewn in front of her. All she did was say 'My job here is done' and she walked away, never to be seen again." explained Randy as he looked out the window.

"What happened next?" asked Adam as he crossed his arms.

"Well, since we couldn't tell the cops that a zombie had killed two of our classmates, we made the scene look like they were killed by some psycho cannibalistic murderer," answered Randy with a sigh. "After that night, we went over to Elizabeth's parents' house to get some answers, but they had already moved out. We went over to the cemetery where Elizabeth was buried an found her grave to be completely open and the casket empty."

"You mean she's still out there somewhere in St. Louis?" asked Kofi in disbelief as he raised an eyebrow.

"Maybe . . ." answered Amanda as she shrugged. "There've been stories from hikers saying that they saw some decomposing girl walking around and living somewhere in the forests around the city. We scoured those woods, but we've found no trace of her. She's basically become one of the supernatural legends of St. Louis today."

"Spooky . . .," muttered Cody as he crossed his arms. "This is probably the first ever ghost story that actually has witnesses that lived it."

"You got that right," muttered Kelly Kelly as the lights and all the electronics came back on. "Oh . . . the lights came back on. Who's next?"

"Well . . . I got a story." said Kaitlyn as she shrugged her shoulders. "There's this old legend from my hometown about this ancient Native American."

Is it one of those Native American burial ground stories?" Monica asked bluntly as she raised an eyebrow.

"It's more like a Native American who becomes a vampire and terrorizes explorers that have desecrated the land," answered Kaitlyn with a shrug. "Is that okay with you guys?"

"You should be directing the question to the resident vampire." said Adam as he nudged his head at Randy.

"I'm fine with it. I've heard plenty of stories about vampires terrorizing people and I probably won't stop hearing them for the rest of my life." said Randy with a shrug.

"Okay then . . . many years ago, during the time when settlers were moving to the West for a better life, there was this expedition group that had reached the area that we call Houston today. They surveyed the land and saw that it would be a great place for a settlement, but the only thing in their way was a Native American tribe that was living in the area. At first, the tribe chief, Chief Stonemarrow, welcomed the explorers with open arms, but when he learned that the explorers wanted their land, he wasn't going to lie down. He commanded all of the men in his village to get ready for a fight, but sadly, the explorers were way too advanced for them. It was a massacre; men, women, children, they were all killed except for the tribal chief. The explorers kept him alive so that he could suffer by himself; to live through the fact that he had led his people to their deaths. But all the tribal chief could think about was revenge. He was already too wounded to move, but revenge continued to be the focus point in his mind. When all hope seemed lost for the tribal chief, out from the horizon came a woman walking toward him. The tribal chief thought that with her pale skin and blonde hair and with the white dress she was wearing, she was some sort of being who was going to take him to the afterlife. But one little bite changed all that." said Kaitlyn with a shrug. "The next time he woke up, all he could think of was revenge, and blood. He found the explorers on the side of a nearby lake and he decimated them all within a few minutes. Come morning, he was satisfied that he was able to avenge his village, but he was all sad that he was the only one that survived from his village. He left that lake alone, never to be seen again. Today, humans call that legend 'Stonemarrow's Wrath', but we people in the Houston supernatural community know otherwise."

"So . . . no one knows what happened to Chief Stonemarrow?" asked Randy as he raised an eyebrow.

"Well . . . after that day, the woman who turned him found him in northern Texas. She taught him all he needed to know about the vampire world. She even managed to convince him to move back the Houston once the city was establish, even though it was hard for him at first. Now, they're the co-heads of the Houston Coven, and also my parents' next door neighbors." said Kaitlyn with a small shrug.

"Well isn't that uncanny." said Cody with a wide eyed look.

"You got that right," said Kaitlyn as she crossed her arms. "Is anyone ready for dinner? I'm starving?"

"I'm feeling in the mood for Chinese," said Adam as he crossed his arms. "Are there any Chinese food places nearby?"

"There's a few over in Mandeville." said Amanda as she stretched out her arms. "But none of them do takeout."

"WHY?" asked half the group as they looked at her in disbelief.

"Have you seen these mountainous roads?" asked Amanda in equal disbelief as she crossed her arms.

"Good point." muttered Adam as he scowled in his seat. "Since you and Monica are the only ones that actually know the area, how about one of you go out into the rain soaked land and get the food?"

"Rock, paper, scissors; loser has to go." said Monica as she got into position.

"Agreed." said Amanda as she too, got into position. They played one game, and that one game decided that Amanda, who played rock, would have to go, since Monica played paper.

"Dammit!" she seethed as she got up from her seat. She then grabbed Randy's arm and pulled off him the chair, taking him by surprise. "You're coming with me."

"WHY?" he asked in surprise as he let her drag him to the stairs.

"I need someone to carry the food!" said Amanda as the two climbed the stairs. The answer got her a few laughs from the others, especially the guys, and a groan from her boyfriend in response.

"Why me?" said Randy with another groan as the two disappeared into the hallway leaving the rest of the group to quickly get a list of orders down before they could get back.

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