Where hinges creak in doorless chambers…
Where strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls…
Where candlelights flicker though the air is deathly still…
All that is the Ravenswood Manor, the home of the unhappy Ravenswood family. You may not believe it, but beauty once lived in this house, a beauty named Melanie Ravenswood.
On a stormy night, young Melanie was about to get married in a grand ceremony that would take place at Ravenswood Manor.
Unfortunately, two terrible tragedies occurred that fateful night.
The first was the passing of her father, Henry Ravenswood, after a fearsome earthquake that nearly crumbled Thunder Mesa.
And the second, which left poor Melanie inconsolable: her groom never showed up.
The young bride did not give up, and it is said that to this day she still waits for her beloved… Alone and sad.
Legends say that you can still hear her singing a melancholic song from the manor window…
So, welcome, foolish readers, to Phantom Manor.
The thunder startled Alyssa Wilkinson, illuminating the room where she was.
"Are you not listening to me?" reacted her friend Bradley Lawson to his companion's tremendous scare.
"Uh… Yeah, sure…"
"That's a no."
"Sorry, I just can't find anything interesting… I need a good story for this weekend to impress the publisher!"
Alyssa had managed to contact a major publishing house to publish an article… An article that didn't actually exist yet.
"Surely you'll find something. There are plenty of interesting stories to tell, like the one about your best friend ignoring you for half an hour."
"What do you mean half an hour!?"
"Maybe you should relax a bit, you're too tense. The story will come to you naturally, you'll see."
Unfortunately, it's not like a story is going to fall from the sky… is it?
That night, Alyssa had to run like never before because of the storm.
Bradley had suggested she stay at his house until the rain stopped, but Alyssa preferred to go back home to continue working on an article.
Although Alyssa was confident she could make it home without the storm bothering her much, she had to make a stop at the City Library when the storm intensified.
"Great, now I'll have to wait here alone." The regret of not accepting her friend's invitation was evident, "And on top of that, soaked."
Alyssa looked at her newly purchased gothic outfit completely drenched and entered the Library, stomping heavily on the floor.
Since she was there, she decided to browse through some books to pass the time. Thus, the young woman spent hours looking for an interesting read, but nothing caught her attention.
"The Best Places in America… I don't feel like sightseeing right now…"
After putting the book back, she caused another one to fall to the ground with force, opening with a loud sound.
"The Story Behind Thunder Mesa? What is this?" The title immediately caught her interest.
She picked up the book from the floor and found a table to sit and read.
The book looked old, with yellowed pages and a logo on the spine: S.E.A.
"It seems like an acronym…"
After this, she began to read.
"Thunder Mesa is a valley located next to the famous Big Thunder Mountain, a huge mountain full of minerals and other valuable materials, as well as the home of the Big Thunder Mining Company, a mining company founded by Henry Ravenswood and…" As strange as it may seem, the ending text was ripped out of the book.
"Well, well, interesting… Maybe this is the story I've been looking for."
Excited, she turned the page to continue reading, and found an image of a beautiful and lovely young woman.
Melanie Ravenswood, daughter of Henry Ravenswood, 1857,
was written at the bottom of the page.
"Melanie… Beautiful name."
He turned the page and… Nothing.
Several pages had been torn out, and there was no more information about Thunder Mesa except for one phrase: "On the wedding night…"
"On the wedding night what?" Alyssa shook the book.
The story she had been searching for could be there, in Thunder Mesa.
"Melanie Ravenswood… I'm going to uncover your story."