Chapter 6

The REAL Witch's Ghost

"What's the matter, Twilight? Don't you like the new improved Ben Ravencroft?" Ben laughed as he removed his glasses.

"No, I don't!" yelled Twilight. "I liked you better when you were just a horror writer!"

"Well, get used to it."

He then turned and faced Mayor Corey and Mr. McKnight, who tried in desperation to flee for their lives. Unfortunately for them, they were stopped by Ben's black magic and locked in the pillory.

"Let us out!" cried Mayor Corey.

Seeing her father in danger, Thorn and the rest of the Hex Girls ran towards them, but soon stopped by Ben's evil magic. He then used it to tie them up to a pole by using the thread from a nearby spindle.

"Sally! NOOOO!" cried Adagio.

"Can I spin a yarn, or what?" mocked Ben.

"YOU MONSTER!" roared Rarity.

"GET THAT BLASTED BOOK AWAY FROM HIM! IT'S OUR ONLY CHANCE!" Applejack shouted.

Daphne snuck up behind Ben and held him tightly, then Fred proceeded to tackle him to take the book. As soon as he did, however, Ben performed an inhuman jump, escaping Fred and Daphne's grasp.

"Where'd he go?!" asked Rainbow.

"I don't know," said Velma.

Just then, they all heard laughter coming from a nearby roof. They looked up and sure enough, there was Ben with Sarah Ravencroft's spell book laughing maniacally.

"This isn't one of your silly little mysteries," he said sinisterly. "You can't solve me so easily!"

He then conjured up some magic and created a flame barrier around Fred, Daphne, Velma, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Twilight.

"You won't get away with this, Ben Ravencroft!"

"Why? Because of you meddling kids?"

"Hey! We're not kids!" snapped Fred.

"But enough of this minor magic. I want to see how powerful I can really be. It's time to summon Sarah Ravencroft."

Ben flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for, then started chanting the spell that would summon his ancestor.

" DREADFUL DARKNESS, HEAR MY CRY. BRING BACK ONE WHO CANNOT DIE."

Before he could continue, however, Shaggy drove up in the Mystery Machine, quenching the magic fire barrier and allowing the others to escape. Scooby opened the back of the van with a big grin on his face, signifying that it was, indeed, a rescue.

"Boy, your timing couldn't be better!" Rainbow exclaimed.

They all got into the Mystery Machine and Shaggy started to drive away from Ben to get away from the spookiness that was Oakhaven, Massachusetts. Angry that they were getting away, Ben fired a blast of black magic at the van, but ended up hitting a tree instead.

"Shaggy, we need to go back for the book! As long as Ben has that thing, he'll have all sorts of dark power at his disposal!" said Twilight.

"Shaggy, look out!" yelled Sunset, pointing to a pile of pumpkins ahead of them.

Shaggy ran over the pumpkins, which ended up working in their favor, as they caused Ben to lose his balance from chasing them. Shaggy went back towards Ben and Scooby grabbed the spell book as they passed him. Angered at what had just happened, Ben fired a blast of black magic at the Mystery Machine's front left tire, blowing it up. This caused Shaggy to start losing control of the van and ended up crashing into the village's gift shop, which ultimately destroyed it. Ben then blew the van's front right tire, which caused Shaggy to lose control of the van even more.

While this was happening, the Dazzlings were busy trying to untie the Hex Girls from the pole. They pulled and pulled as hard as they could, but they couldn't get the yarn loose at all.

"Can't you pull any harder, Sonata?" reprimanded Aria.

"You think I'm not trying?!" Sonata retorted.

"Less talking, more pulling!" Adagio demanded.

As Shaggy continued driving, Fluttershy screamed in fright upon seeing the turkey pen. Even though Shaggy managed to break the wooden fence, the turkeys remained unharmed.

"Why don't you watch where you're going? You could've seriously hurt those poor birds!" she hissed.

"YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT THOSE TURKEYS AT A TIME LIKE THIS?! WHAT ABOUT US?!" Rarity shrieked.

Before anyone else could answer, Ben managed to blow up the back right tire of the Mystery Machine, causing it to careen to a complete stop, complete with a broken windshield.

"Well, at least we still have one tire," said Shaggy. After he had said that, the back left tire blew up on its own, rendering the gang helpless.

"Still have one tire, huh?" Sunset said angrily.

Just then, Ben landed on the hood of the Mystery Machine and snatched Sarah Ravencroft's spell book away from Scooby. He then did a backflip that would make Olympic divers jealous and landed a few feet in front of the Mystery Machine.

"Twilight, what did you mean when you said that that book would only bring about destruction?" asked Daphne.

"If Ben is successful in summoning Sarah Ravencroft, or the witch's ghost, as our book calls it, then she will bring destruction upon the world and summon an entity that's even more evil: Her master," explained Twilight.

Ben opened the spell book and began to read the spell one more time.

" DREADFUL DARKNESS, HERE MY CRY," he chanted. " BRING BACK ONE WHO CANNOT DIE. LET THE WITCH WHO PERISHED HERE LIVE AGAIN AND REAPPEAR!"

As they ran up to stop him, a flash of green lightning struck the ground and caused the earth to shake.

"WE'RE TOO LATE!"

Ben let out a laugh that could only be described as pure evil as he basked in his supposed victory. As the spell continued, a white will-o'-the-wisp of pure evil formed and started spinning like a miniature tornado until it took on the form of Ben's ghostly ancestor, the witch, Sarah Ravencroft.

She was a middle-aged woman with ghostly-pale skin, pink sclera around her eyes and long, white hair that flowed and rippled in the air. She was dressed in a lavender-colored gown and had a red pendant around her neck. No one was more surprised than Ben, as he was amazed that the spell actually worked.

"In my wildest dreams, I could never have imagined such an imposing creature."

"Thank thee," said Sarah. "Thou canst not know what my bondage hath been like. Who art thou?"

"Ben Ravencroft, your descendant from the modern world."

"Modern?" she huffed as she looked around in suspicion. "Not much seems to have changed. The same pathetic peasants groveling for their puny lives."

"Sarah… I want to become more powerful, like you."

Sarah laughed at his offer, showing just how little she cared about the lives of mere mortals.

"Thou jest!"

"But it was I who released you! You should serve me!"

"I do not serve a worm like thee! I only have one master! And whenst the time be ripe, I shall release him! Until then, I will punish the world for my long imprisonment."

Sarah extended her left hand and unleashed a stream of evil black magic towards the trees and fences, causing everything within the blast to wither and die, much to her delight.

"This isn't what I envisioned. We were supposed to rule the world together, not destroy it."

"I care not for thy whims. Cross my path and I shall destroy thee along with thy world!"

"But I have the book!" he threatened. "And I will return you back into the book."

He opened the book and started reading the spell that would return Sarah into the book forever. Sarah, however, just laughed at his stupidity.

"Thinkest thou art a wiccan?" she mocked. "Only a virtuous soul can imprison me and my master."

With a blast of her dark magic, she imprisoned Ben in a green, magic ball. She then laughed in delight at his misfortune.

"I don't know about you guys, but I've had just about enough of this witch!" Rainbow snarled.

Just before she could do anything, Sunset dragged her back.

"Wait a minute, Rainbow Dash. If we're going to do anything, then we're going to have to get that book one way or another."

"Like, not again," Shaggy groaned.

"Shaggy, please. You guys have to. You're the fastest runners out of all us."

"No wray," said Scooby.

"Maybe you'd do it for the whole box of Scooby Snacks?"

"A whole box?" said Shaggy.

The two agreed to her plan in exchange for the entire box of Scooby Snacks.

"Good luck, Norvie."

She then gave him a kiss for good luck on his cheek, causing him to blush.

"So, what's the plan?" asked Velma.

"We'll create a diversion while they go for the book. Sound good?"

"I'm game," said Pinkie as she stood in front of Sarah.

"Hey, Witch Hazel, over here! Nyanyanyanyanyanya!"

"Thou shall pay for thine impudence!" growled Sarah.

Angered, she fired a huge blast of magic at them. The friends ended up dodging the blast, which instead destroyed the box of Scooby Snacks that Scooby and Shaggy were enjoying.

"Guess snack time's over," gulped Shaggy.

"Reah," agreed Scooby as the box burnt to a crisp in his paw.

Terrified, the two of them start running for their lives from the ghost.

"500 years hasn't helped your aim, lady!" Fred mocked.

Rainbow Dash blew raspberry to add insult to injury before running off with Fred and Daphne.

"Thine mockery shall be thy last!" boomed Sarah.

As the three of them ran, Sarah eventually used her magic to bring a bunch of pumpkins to life to attack them. While all of this was going on, the Dazzlings were continuing their attempts to untie the Hex Girls from the pole.

"Can you go any slower?" Dusk said angrily.

"Shut up, blondie! We're doing our best!" Aria snarled.

As the three of them continued their attempts to untie them, the six of them saw Velma and Twilight run past them while being chased by a pumpkin monster.

"I've heard of killer tomatoes, but this is ridiculous!" said Twilight.

Eventually, the two of them managed to run past a tree, which the pumpkin monster ran straight into, ultimately defeating it.

"Jinkies," Velma gasped, nearly out of breath.

Just then, Sarah fired a blast of magic at the tree they were resting at. Even though the blast missed them, it managed to hit the tree, setting it ablaze. Terrified, the two girls ran as fast as they could once the tree was set on fire.

Scooby and Shaggy eventually managed to get Sarah's spell book, much to her frustration.

"DO MY BIDDING BIRD! GET THEM!" she boomed, firing a blast of magic at a nearby turkey.

Scooby and Shaggy laughed at the thought of a turkey being able to stop until they noticed that Sarah's magic had made it quadruple in size. The two of them decided to make a break for it and started running from the giant turkey, much to Sarah's delight.

Meanwhile, Fred, Daphne and Rainbow Dash continued to run from the pumpkin monster that Sarah had brought to life earlier. The monster eventually extended one of its roots and ensnared Daphne's leg, causing her trip. Knowing that she was in danger, both Fred and Rainbow ran back to save her.

"Let go of her, you freak!" Rainbow bellowed.

She then let out a mighty roundhouse kick, effectively destroying the pumpkin monster and freeing Daphne. Upon doing so, however, she failed to notice another one coming towards her. She then found herself at the mercy of the other pumpkin monster once it ensnared her leg with its roots. Rainbow Dash, however, wasn't one to go so easily, as she ended up giving the pumpkin monster an incredibly powerful punch. The impact of which ended up defeating it, as well.

Meanwhile, Scooby and Shaggy continued running from the giant turkey that had been chasing them for some time. Fluttershy, who was watching this unfold, eventually saw the turkey and decided to run from it, as well. The three eventually found a little bit of safety inside one of the old cottages in the village. Upon making it to the other side, both Scooby and Shaggy decided to tease the bird.

"Gobble, gobble, gobble," mocked Shaggy.

"Shaggy! That was rude!" Fluttershy chastised.

Suddenly, Sarah descended outside the door that Shaggy opened and demanded to have the book back. He immediately closed the door and the three friends leaned against a wall as Sarah used her magic to blast the door. Upon doing so, the door flew towards the giant turkey's head, which made it dizzy. Upon regaining consciousness, the turkey was face-to-face with a very displeased Fluttershy.

"Shame on you! You should feel awful knowing that you just put our lives in danger! Picking on others smaller than you is completely unforgivable!" she snarled.

She then gave the turkey an extremely harsh stare that could only be described as terrifying. Upon seeing her infamous stare, the turkey ran away in absolute terror. With the turkey out of the way, all that was left was to deal with an angry Sarah Ravencroft, who was closing in on the trio. They grabbed the spell book and ran as fast as they could back to the others.

Speaking of the others, the Dazzlings eventually managed to untie the Hex Girls from the pole with the help of Velma and Daphne.

"Thanks. I am out of here," said Luna.

"Yeah. That witch is the real thing," added Dusk as she walked off with Luna.

Thorn was just about to walk away with them, when she was immediately dragged back by Velma.

"Wait, Thorn! We need your help!" she said.

"Me? What can I do?" asked Thorn.

"We need you to read that spell to defeat Sarah Ravencroft."

"Are you crazy!? I told you! I'm not really a witch. I… can't help you against her!"

"Sally, please! Just listen to her!" pleaded Adagio. "You're 1/16 Wiccan, remember? That means only YOU can read that spell that'll imprison Sarah Ravencroft back in her spell book!"

Just then, Pinkie immediately noticed that Scooby had the book in his mouth and motioned to him where they were. Before he could go any further, however, Sarah immediately grabbed his tail and snatched the book back. Out of desperation to save his buddy, Shaggy picked up a bucket of water and splashed it on to Sarah. Unfortunately, she didn't melt like he thought she would.

"Fool! I shall destroy thee!" snarled Sarah.

"Destroy this, you ugly old hag!" Rainbow shouted as she threw a washboard at her.

The washboard hit Sarah in the head, causing her to drop Scooby. After seeing who had hit her, Sarah's eyes widened.

"No! It cannot be! The descendants of the ones who defeated my master! Thou shall pay for the loss of his victory!"

"What's she babbling about?" Rainbow asked.

"Beats me," Sunset shrugged.

"Thou hast proven to be thorns for too long! Now, I shall unleash me master upon thine world!" Sarah exclaimed.

She then raised her free hand into the sky and conjured up a whirlwind of red magic. Lightning crashed down as she did this. Eventually, everyone heard a laugh that could only be described as pure evil. They looked up and saw what appeared to be a pair of yellow eyes in the sky that accompanied the evil laughter.

"QUICK! GRAB THE BOOK!" Twilight shouted.

Shaggy immediately grabbed Sarah's spell book from her and started running back towards the gang. Angry that it was taken from her again, Sarah used her magic to bring two pumpkins to life to retrieve her spell book. The pumpkin monsters eventually ensnared Shaggy with their roots, rendering him nearly helpless. Out of desperation, Shaggy tossed the book to Scooby-Doo, who caught it in his mouth. Frustrated, Sarah then made a tree come to life, which grabbed Scooby and hoisted him upward.

"Scooby! Toss it over here!" Rainbow shouted.

Scooby tossed the book to Rainbow, who then tossed the book towards the others as if it were a football. Luckily, Adagio caught the book and handed it over to Thorn, who opened it to the page of the spell that would imprison Sarah Ravencroft back into it. Before she could read it, however, Sarah attempted to snatch it back with her magic, but realized it had no effect on Thorn. It was then that she realized that Thorn had Wiccan blood in her.

"I'll stop thee myself!" Sarah snarled.

She then flew towards them to grab the book before Thorn had a chance to read the spell.

"Sally! Hurry! Read the spell!" Sonata panicked.

" ANCIENT EVIL, GET THEE HENCE," read Thorn. " ONLY GOOD CAN RECOMPENSE FOR THE MISDEEDS THAT YOU'VE DONE. WITCH RETURN FROM WHENCE YOU'VE COME!"

Just as Sarah grabbed the book, she was blown back by it as the magic from it started to undo nearly all of the evil things that had been done that night. Once the pumpkins had returned to normal, Sunset immediately ran over to Shaggy and gave him a hug. The two of them then ducked as Sarah attempted to escape being imprisoned inside the book again. It was no use, however, as the spell was just too powerful.

Once Ben was free from his magic prison, he attempted to escape, but was soon stopped by Sarah's ghost.

"I WON'T GO BACK ALONE!" she wailed as she dragged Ben into the book with her.

Once the book closed, one of the branches that was on fire from the tree that Sarah had set ablaze earlier landed on it. The fire from said branch ultimately ended up destroying the book entirely.

"Hoo boy! Now that was a close one!" Applejack sighed.

"Yeah! In your face, darkness! We just kicked your butt!" Rainbow taunted.

"But did we really?" Twilight questioned.

"What do you mean, Twilight? Of course we did!"

"Maybe. Still, I have a feeling that we didn't completely destroy the entirety of Sarah's evil. She did manage to summon her master. Not entirely, though, but just enough to where he'll still be resurrected as something… or someone."

"Well, whoever or whatever this new foe of ours is going to be, we'll be sure to face it at some point," said Applejack.

"And when we do, we'll be ready for it!" added Rainbow as both Luna and Dusk freed both Mayor Corey and Mr. McKnight from the pillory.

Thorn was so happy to see her father free that she ran up to him and gave him a big hug. Mayor Corey, on the other hand, was devasted to see most of the Puritan Village in ruins from Sarah's attack.

"WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO FOR OUR AUTUMNFEST?!" he panicked.

"Well, you still have the Hex Girls," Thorn said reassuringly. "Not to mention my cousins, the Dazzlings."

"No offense, girls, but I think we need a bigger attraction."

Shaggy then tapped on the mayor's shoulder and pointed towards the giant turkey. It was a LITERAL bigger attraction and just what he needed to get the Autumnfest back on.

With the festival back on, the Hex Girls and the Dazzlings performed one last song to close everything out known as Earth, Wind, Fire, & Air. It was quite the hit. Even the gang joined in to help them out with their playing, as well. Not only did the people in the audience enjoy the music, but so did the giant turkey. Once the festival was over, the Dazzlings decided to visit their mother's grave before packing up and heading home.

It was quite the mystery for everyone. A little bit more dangerous than they had hoped for, but it was still one that they would never forget. Little did they realize that their encounter with real monsters was far from over. In fact, it was only just beginning.

THE END