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Muriel stuck out her head through the door. "Okay it is clear!" she squealed earning a glare from Stella. "Oops sorry."
I open the door and headed to the library but was stopped by Stella who gestured to me to hide.
I do so and watch as Gwen walked passed me still wielding her machete.
"Ooh, she looks scary!" Muriel whispered as she cowered behind me. "Looks like Ariana did do the ritual on her."
I look back at her. "Ritual?"
She nods. "I heard her tell someone something about possessing her but I didn't get the details."
I look away. 'No wonder she has been acting strange and her voice sounded like they were two people living in her.'
Stella gestured that the coast is clear and I emerge from my hiding place and run to the door leading to the school's garden but Muriel stopped me.
"Stella says we can take a shortcut to main building two through the roof." She says pointing.
I look at the stairs and gulp. "A ghost tried to kill me when I went up there last."
Muriel hummed in thought and grinned. "Oh! I see you met Hing!"
"Hing?"
"Yeah! She always sits alone on the roof waiting for someone to come up there." Muriel explained. "She is a vengeful one but I heard she is nice if you pay attention to her."
Hand on my chin, I think deeply about what she said. 'That was my mistake! I ignored her when she was coughing out blood and dying before my eyes.' then I look at my ghostly friends. 'I know what to do.'
Stella's head jerked up and gestured for me to go up the stairs. When I get to the roof, I see the ghost sitting on the bench eating what looked like a bento.
'Well, here goes nothing!' I sit next to her.
"He...Hello!" I say waving to her.
She looks up and stares at me with red glowing eyes. I flinch but continue. "M...my name is Emma. What is yours?"
The glow in her eyes disappeared, replaced with warmness. She looks away and continues to eat but starts coughing violently while holding her throat.
"What is the matter?" I try to touch her but my hand went through. "Are you alright?"
She responded by coughing and gaging while foaming in the mouth until she collapsed to the ground. As I looked at her 'body', it suddenly disappeared and there she was standing behind me.
"Go in peace!" she says before disappearing again.
I blink. 'What just happened?'
"Woohoo! You honored her!" Muriel squeals jumping up and down. "This means you can pass here without incident!"
I run, to open the door but suddenly remember something. 'Wait a minute, her death was similar to Eric's.' I look back. 'Were they poisoned by the same substance that killed them?'
"Stella says you should stop thinking and keep moving," Muriel said. "We have little time left!"
'Wait they can hear my thoughts?'
"Yes silly! We are ghosts remember?" Muriel said folding her arms and shaking her head.
We move on until we get to the library and Stella pointed at a stack of newspapers at the right.
I instantly groan. "It is going to take all night to get through that."
"Stella suggests you get started," Muriel says with a grin on her face.
I start sorting out the newspapers one by one while listening to any sound of footsteps. 'Brutes said five girls were picked but there were two left before the show. This means I am looking for four newspaper articles.'
I look behind me and see my ghostly friends have disappeared. 'Looks like I am on my own.'
I find what I am looking for, sit down at a study desk and start reading.
"I am sorry we were unable to help you." Muriel's voice startled me but she had a sad look on her face. "We can't touch anything because we are ghosts but we do have the power to possess someone."
I nod and look back at the paper. "It says here that you died from blood loss at your feet at your own home."
Muriel nods as tears run down her face. "I did not even know I was dead. When I woke up, I saw myself looking at my dead body and watching my parents cry."
My heart sank and I felt tears prick my eyes. Blinking them away, I continue to read and find out she had a blood disease that made her blood unable to clot. Picking up the next newspaper which had an article on Stella, I was shocked at what I read.
"She drank acid?"
"Shh." Muriel cautioned and looked around. "She doesn't like to be reminded of that!"
I apologize and look at the paper. "Someone switched the water in her bottle with an acid which burnt her mouth and throat."
"She drank it not knowing what it was," Muriel said wiping her tears. "I feel sorry for her. She was a good singer too."
"I see," I say picking up another paper. 'She was a double threat.'
"Eliminated? What are you talking about?" Muriel asked. "Do you think someone was targeting us?"
"It seems so." I pick up another paper. "The last one was stabbed in the Music Room."
Muriel gasped covering her mouth with her hand. "Alia!"
I look up from the paper. "That was her name."
"No wonder she is a vengeful ghost haunting the Music Room." she gulped. "If you go close to that room, you will be killed instantly."
I pick up the last one although I already knew her story. "Are all ghosts vengeful?"
"Some are but they have reasons for being that way." She explained. "Most of the ghosts were killed by their friends or classmates so they generate a lot of power through their hatred. Most of them are so powerful they can kill a person in seconds without thinking about it."
"And Regina is a powerful ghost as well?" I ask.
She nods. "She has been feeding off the negative energy from both ghosts and humans so she has enough power to possess someone."
"But why Gwen?" I ask.
Muriel shrugs. "You said we were being targeted. Do you think Gwen is the one behind this?"
I look away in thought. 'I recalled Gwen telling me everyone has secrets.' a shiver went up my spine. 'Maybe this is her secrete? Was she so ambitious she had to kill everyone to reach her goal?'
Suddenly Stella appeared with a worried look in her eyes and pointed to a corner so I get up and go there.
"What is going on?" Muriel asked crouching beside me.
Suddenly the door burst open and Gwen walked in with a sly look on her face. "I know you are here Gwen's friend. Come out!"
I stay put and Stella puts a finger on her mask telling me to be quiet. I nod and watch Gwen walk past me dragging the machete on the floor.
'It looks bigger than the last one.' I think. Stella nodded and gestured for me to crawl quickly to another hiding space and I do so. It was hard not to make a sound but it was worth it.
"Come out, come out, where ever you are!" she sang walking passed me again. "You can't hide forever."
I wait until Stella gave the signal and crawl to another hiding place and just in time too. Gwen took a peek at my former hiding spot and growled.
"You know," she brandished her machete in her hand. "A long time has passed since I watched
Gwen ruin my chances of becoming a star."
I listen carefully and crawl to another hiding spot.
"We were friends. We did everything together but when the opportunity came to be famous I could not let her get in my way."
She grabbed a table and violently moved it out of the way. "So I severed the competition. Killing them was my only option since they were better than me but she was the last one standing!"
I crawl to another hiding spot.
"But she had to ruin it! Her and her stupid martial art skills!"
I see something flying across the room.
"I lost everything because of her! My dream, my goal, my passion, my life..." she cackled evilly.
"But I am going to ruin hers. Starting with you."
I look up and see the door was a few meters away.
'Finally!'
"You will be my first victim." she cackled again. "Don't worry, your little friends would love to accommodate you but I will make sure she suffers as much as I have suffered."
I look at Stella who nodded and start crawling towards the door but as luck may have it, my phone rang.
'Damn it!' I spring to my feet to a run but someone grabbed my collar and threw me to where the tables were. I collide with it with a loud bang but react just in time to dodge the machete but that causes my bag to open and my knife to fall out of it.
"Tired already?" she lands the machete on my legs but I shift them just in time and move out of the way. Grabbing my knife I use it to block the next blow but the impact caused the blade to break in two. Just as she was going to cut me down for good, the whole room turned red and a ghostly figure floated toward us. It had long hair, one red eye, lots of arms and was wearing what looked like a tattered school uniform. It gave a loud ear piercing screech that shattered all the windows in the library and made the furniture elevate in the air.
Gwen or can I say Regina smiled at it. "Let me guess, you want to kill me? No matter."
A purple aura surrounded her and it was bigger than the other spirits. "I have been cultivating spirit energy for years so you are no match for me! Prepare to die Alia!"
I gasp. 'That thing is Alia?'
"Emma!" someone screamed. "Get out of there!"
I jump to my feet, pack my things and run out of the library. As I enter a classroom, I hear a loud bang followed by Regina's evil laugh echoing through the halls of the school.
"Phew! That was close!" Muriel said. "Another second and you would have been one of us!"
I sigh and take a look at my phone. It was Jake who called me. "Damn it! That boy will kill me someday! But I turned off my phone on my way here!"
Another bang was heard followed by a screech and Muriel panicked. "It looks like Alia can't hold on much longer. At least she knows who killed her."
I think for a minute. "We have to vanquish that spirit!"
"How?" Muriel asks.
"I...I don't know." I reply.
"Don't look at me! I can't fight her one on one!" she says.
"Neither can I," I reply. "I am only human."
Then Stella appeared to us looking spent.
"There you are!" Muriel said. "Where were you?"
She pointed to the Music Room.
"Why were you there?" then she gasped. "You mean you went to call Alia?"
Stella nods.
"No wonder you look tired. She must have drained some of your spirit energy!"
I look at her and bow my head to apologize. She nods and I look around the classroom. It was the same room where I hid from her earlier.
"Now I understand what she meant by, 'runaway and she dies.'" I said sitting on a chair.
"Huh?"
"If I leave she is going to kill Gwen. If I stay she is going to kill me."
"Oh." Muriel sat down beside me and so did Stella who upon closer inspection looked older.
'Maybe that is what happens when someone drains their spirit energy.' I think with a huge sigh. 'But what can I do? I can't leave Gwen behind and I can't leave them alone either.'
"You don't have to worry about us," Muriel said making it clear she read my mind. "We made a decision to be here and if being here means dying as a ghost then so be It." but she sighed. "At least we know who killed us. I think it is called closer right Stella?"
Stella nodded and looked up to the ceiling. Then her eyes widened and she starts gesturing to me.
"What is it?" Muriel asks.
She gestures again.
"Oh, I get it!" Muriel says clapping her hands in glee.
"What is it?" I ask.
"Stella remembered something! She says that the reason why Regina can possess Gwen is she has a piece of her!"
I raise an eyebrow. "A piece of her?"
She nods. "Ghosts can haunt a person if said person has an item that was worn by a person when they pass away!"
"But what about the spirit energy stuff?" I ask.
"Spirit energy is only necessary when the ghost wants to possess someone. Gwen must have Regina's property and Regina is using that thing to haunt her while gathering enough spirit energy to possess her!"
"Oh, I get it." I put a hand on my chin. "But what is the thing that Gwen has?"
"That is where we are stuck," Muriel says with a huge groan.
I think hard for a while until I travel back in time to Regina's boasting and the part where she attacked me.
'She was dressed as the black swan but her clothing is incomplete!' I close my eyes and tried to figure out what it was then gasped. Brutes' words echoed in my head; 'when they found the black swan, her ballet shoes were missing.'
"That is it!" I scream jumping to my feet, startling Muriel and Stella.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Her shoes! Gwen has her shoes!" I yell.
Stella's eyes widened and closed while Muriel clapped her hands in glee but she stopped, "Where did Gwen keep them?"
I think hard until I recall seeing something in Caroline's room. 'I have to go back there.'
"Back to where?" Muriel asks.
"Back to the room, Caroline stays in. I saw something that can point out where the shoes are."
Stella's face turned pale and she began to shake her head vigorously.
I raise an eyebrow. "What is wrong?"
"We...we can't go in there," Muriel explains.
"Why?"
"No ghost has gone in that room! Ever! Once we go in, there will be something that prevents us from going out!"
"But I did not see any ghost in that room."
"That is the thing!" she responds hugging her arms. Suddenly the ground shook causing the objects around me to vibrate. Stella looks up and looks at the window. I do the same and see something bright on the horizon.
"Oh no!" Muriel said balling her fists in fear then she looked at me. "Emma! You don't have enough time!"
"What do you mean?"
"When the sun rises, over the school we disappear and since Regina has possessed Gwen you will have to wait until the next night to vanquish her."
I whip out my phone and see it was five-thirty. 'Dang it! 6 AM is sunrise!'
Then an evil cackle echoed around the school.
"She is close," Muriel said. "Go, Emma! Find those shoes and destroy them!"
"What about you?" I ask.
"We will distract her! Now go!" she said pointing at the door.
I rush out of the classroom and sprint straight to the second main building taking a shortcut through the rooftop. I finally reach my destination and open the door startling the orange-haired girl who was asleep on the floor. I ignore her and rush to the room covered with a curtain.
"Bingo!" I say grabbing the cardboard box and ripping it open. There lying in a pile of junk were the black ballet shoes but they had a strange sign on them.
'It looks similar to the pentagram I saw in the locker which held Adrian's journal.' I shake my head violently. 'No time to think! I need to destroy them!'
Burning them seemed to be the only option and the science lab was the best place to find flammable items. I rush there, grab a flame burner, and a chemical that had a flammable sign on the bottle. After soaking the shoes in them, I leave the room and start looking for the ghost.
My search lead me to the school hall and lying on the floor were Muriel and Stella and floating in the air was Gwen possessed by Regina. The purple aura was everywhere and her hair was flying.
'She drained their spirit energy and has become more powerful.' I turn on the flame burner. 'But not this time.'
Regina's eyes turned on me and her grin turned to horror when she saw what was in my hand.
"No!" she charged toward me but I put the flame burner close to the shoes.
"I know you were ambitious but what you did and doing now is wrong," I say. "Maybe in your next life, you will be a star."
With that, I set the shoes on fire causing her to screech. Then a bright light appeared forcing me to close my eyes. When I open them, I was surrounded by tiny ballerinas dressed in white. They danced and twirled around me to an unknown person's voice and came together to form four huge figures dressed in white, blue, cream, and black.
"Thank you," they said bowing in unison. I give them a thumbs up and they disappear.
The sun's beams shined through the windows and doors of the school hall and I am standing in the middle of it holding the flame burner in my hand. The sound of Gwen moaning made me drop the item and run over to her.
"Gwen are you alright?" I ask.
She groaned in response and I help her up.
"Emma? Wha...what happened?"
I smile. "It's a..."
My phone rang and without thinking, I take it out of my bag and throw it onto the wall shattering it to pieces.
"Like I was about to say, it's a long story but let's get out of here okay?"
She gave a nod and slung her arm over my shoulder.
Meanwhile...
On the school's roof, someone took a picture of Emma and Gwen with a grin on her face.
"Oh, Emma. It may look like you helped a friend in need." she sent the picture to someone and turned off her phone. "In reality, you just caused her demise." 202Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbVOslIGUQE
