The Last Dainv

Chapter 268

Everyone bolted back through the forest toward the fence. Their flashlights chaotically bobbled wildly as they ran through the path between the trees.

Presence Between's tendrils locked on to the ghost lady's form. She floated through the forest at the same speed as they ran. Whipping overhead branches seemed to pass through her immaterial body.

"Don't run... don't run..." Her whispers caught his ears as if they spoke those words right beside him.

What to do?! Guide?! Gale mouthed.

[No killing intent detected from entity. Threat Level: Minimal]

I didn't ask about that! I asked what to do!

[Crucifix and Ghost Killing Powder available in space storage as mentioned by host.]

Right! There was those things.

While running, Gale materialized the crucifix in his right hand and the ghost powder pouch in his left hand.

Sprinkling some on the crucifix, he jumped forward, twisted his body, aimed, and threw the ghost powder covered crucifix at the ghost lady. However, it whooshed right past her. Not even a mark on her form or any sign of damage.

"Child.... that was dangerous..." The ghost lady smiled at him.

It either missed completely or went past her since she's not on the physical plane, but probably the former. And that smile set off all of his internal alarm bells that this thing couldn't be killed.

Dad. I promise I'll train my range skills after this. Anything to beat ghosts. Anything to not have to melee a ghost.

As his foot landed back onto the ground to continue running, the tendrils tugged at him once again. The ghost lady had disappeared.

"Wait! She's gone!" Gale shouted at the others ahead.

"That's what ghosts do! Keep running!" Andrew shouted back.

"Get to the car!" Mia shouted.

"Oh fuck. Oh fuck. Oh fuck." Jacob whined, almost stumbling on a pebble.

As they reached the fence, Andrew stopped in his tracks. Mia bumped into him, and Jacob squished Mia against Andrew. Gale, on the other hand, stopped himself on a dime.

Ahead, beyond the fence, the white ghost lady smiled with a tilted head, one that showed her teeth baring at them. She sat on an imaginary platform on top of the car as she swung her feet playfully in the air. There were no blemishes on her skin. Her dark lips signified her nature as an undead. Yet other than her dark circles, she possessed a surreal beauty that could not exist in the normal plane.

"Children. It'll be ok. It'll just be a nice, calm, serene, talk. Let me sing for you too," the white ghost lady said. "Happy birthday to you... happy birthday to you... happy birthday, happy birthday..."

"AAAAH!" Mia shouted.

Andrew bolted, grabbing her by the arm. Jacob followed. To where? Even Gale didn't know. They just ran back into the trees, but not taking the footpath already laid.

"This was a great idea, guys. A fucking goddamn great idea. First the asylum, now this shit." Tears fell from Mia's cheeks as she ran. "Ghost hunting when we already know spectral entities exist as Awakened. Great idea! Remind me who came up with this again? Who?"

"You came along with it!" Jacob jumped over a jutted out root.

"I was trying to prove you wrong!"

"Well, shit, it was true!" Andrew shouted. "Gale, can't you beat her up or something?"

"Hell no! I just threw a cross at her. It didn't work! I told you guys, I told you. Ghosts aren't to mess with. This one's real!" Gale said rapidly. "We should've just been the Go Home Normies."

This was a terrible idea. If the crucifix didn't work, then Erebus wouldn't work. If Erebus wouldn't work, then his fists wouldn't work. If his fists didn't work, then running wouldn't work because she caught up to them in an instant! If his friends weren't here, maybe he could get away, but that wasn't an option. But even then, she was too fast. There was no running away from a deranged stalker ghost.

Suddenly, to their left, the ghost lady appeared, floating through the trees, matching their speed. Her head turned jankily to Mia.

"There's nowhere to hide in the woods. It's dangerous." The ghost lady smiled even more.

"AAAAAH!" Mia shouted. "RUN FASTER!"

Everyone turned right and kept running. Foot pounded against the dirt even harder. A jutted-out root got smashed in as Jacob stepped into one.

Presence Between's tendrils stretched out forward to where they were heading. Up ahead was a cliff that dropped down in a steep descent.

Before Gale could alert the others, he noticed that they weren't getting any closer to the cliff. It was as though they ran on a treadmill, never able to reach the end of their destination.

As they ran, the white ghost lady floated beside them again. She passed through a rather thick tree trunk. "You can't go there. That's not allowed."

"AAAH!" Mia screamed again and veered in another direction.

Everyone followed her, crashing through a thick underbrush. Presence Between suddenly tugged at his senses. There were only two Early-Awakened signatures beside him. Mia was supposed to be running up ahead, but no matter how much faster they tried to catch up to her, she couldn't be reached. Tendrils also didn't sense her.

"Where's Mia?!" Andrew shouted, noticing she wasn't anywhere near in front of them.

"She-she disappeared. I can't sense her," Gale said. Presence Between stretched even further. Maybe she ran faster than them. But no. She wasn't there. Her presence was completely gone, which could only mean...

"MIA!" Jacob screamed. "MIA WHERE ARE YOU?!"

No response as they kept running.

"She's gone, Jacob. She's gone..." Gale stopped running, and the others did as well.

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"What do you mean gone?!" Jacob said, trembling. "She was right ahead of us! She can't be gone. No way."

"Keep running," Andrew said and dragged Jacob by the arm. "We can't help her if we're caught too."

Sobs began to stream down Jacob's face. But at least he was still running. Gale ran too. No longer could he stop his tears.

Mia was gone. One of the first people who had accepted him in this cruel, cruel world. Gone just like that because of a stupid ghost hunt.

The ghost lady appeared beside them again, floating on Gale's left side this time. She raised a pale finger to her dark lips in a shushing gesture.

"Shhhh. It would be best if you quiet down, children," she whispered gently. "It would be bad if you wake them up."

"WAKE UP WHO? WHAT THE FUCK!" Jacob screamed. "The whole forest is cursed! Andrew, why didn't you stop me!?"

"Why are you blaming me?!" Andrew shouted. "Just keep running!"

They kept running, but Gale had completely lost track of which direction led where. His tendrils gave him the same confusing feedback no matter which way he pushed them. Before they came here, the forest wasn't that large. But even as he expanded his tendrils further, it seemed endless except for the way back to the car. At least that was still there.

Bursting into a clearing, Andrew stumbled to a stop, bent over with his hands on his knees, catching his breath. "Hold on. We're getting lost. Let me try something."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a compass. As his hands pulled out the item, it shook too much, causing it to slip from his fingers and fall onto the ground.

"Fuck."

Bending down to reach for it, just as his fingers almost touched the compass, another hand reached for it faster than him. A pure white hand took it into its grasp and held it out to him.

Everyone looked up. Gale saw her eerie, unnatural smile that had too much teeth and unsmiling eyes.

"Children shouldn't drop things in nature," the white ghost lady said. Her eyes caught Gale's.

No words were exchanged between them. Gale ran first and the two followed him. None of them looked back. They exited the clearing and entered the forest once more into a never-ending

Running through the trees with Jacob right behind him, tears began to run down his eyes even more.

"The asylum wasn't this bad. At least we lived to tell the tale. But this... this is completely different," Jacob said as he ran and cried at the same time.

"Last time you lived because of me," Gale said, sniffling and wiping his snot off. "You idiots. All of you idiots. I told you we should just go home. Ghosts are too dangerous. I'm really going to miss them. Mia and Andrew. I'm sorry I couldn't protect you guys."

"What about me?" Jacob asked.

"I'm going to miss you too."

"I'm still here though!"

"For now."

Jacob suddenly pointed ahead. "The bridge! Gale, I can see the bridge up ahead!"

Gale looked through the trees and saw it. The wooden planks of Old Finch Avenue Bridge and the footpath that had formed towards the bridge would lead them back to the car.

Then they saw her standing right in front of the path to the bridge. Her smile was gone, turned into a somber expression that looked more like disappointment.

"There's no point in running," she said softly. "I just want to have a chat."

Her eyes caught Gale's once more. Why him again? Why not Jacob? But those questions wouldn't matter if this thing caught him and ate him.

Gale reacted first, running back to the car, following the footpath. Jacob's signature... gone. He couldn't keep up.

I'm sorry, Jacob. You three were my bestest mundane friends. Now gone because I'm too weak.

Remember this, ghosts. I'll kill all of you. This debt shall be recorded in history and will be paid in blood.

Tears streamed down his face as his legs no longer held back their speed. He quickly arrived at the fence, phasing through it. Trying to open the driver's side, it was locked. Gale phased into it instead.

He pressed the start button on the car, but nothing happened. Of course nothing would happen. It's a car that needs its keys.

Gale slapped the car's wheel, causing it to slightly bend. Wait. Is he stupid? He didn't need a car. His running speed was faster than a car.

Before he could phase out of the car, he looked up. Through the windshield, the ghost lady was already in front of the car, smiling at him with her teeth that would definitely eat him for breakfast.

Shit. Now it was his turn. He was about to die. If Rachel was here, this ghost would be dead meat. Fire was the enemy of ghosts, she said. Rachel would have burned this stupid ghost stalking them the whole time. She was the light of the city that would burn away the darkness.

The white ghost lady passed through the car, aiming for him. Gale activated Phase Touch and ran out of the car.

Something caught his collar by the back. Looking back, her smile appeared right in front of him.

"I got you," she said. "Hello there."

A silent scream escaped Gale's throat. Then darkness took him over. Literally. He didn't pass out. Darkness enveloped his whole being along with the white lady. He closed his eyes, waiting for his death.

Thud.

Gale's butt hit a wooden floor. Opening his eyes, he looked around. Mia, Andrew, and Jacob sat around a coffee table, eating snacks. On the table were multiple packs of apple juice, potato chips, and chocolate bars.

"Oh, Gale. Welcome."

Gale materialized Erebus and the ghost powder pouch. Sprinkling the ghost powder on it, he readied his stance after dematerializing the ghost powder pouch back into the space storage. "What are you guys eating!? Where's the ghost lady? I'll fight here if I have to."

"Gale, relax. It's all just a misunderstanding."

Tendrils tugged at him. Movement behind.

The door opened. What entered was the white ghost lady from what looked like a kitchen behind her. She had an apron on, pink with a handsome anime guy printed on it. In her hands was a tray of freshly baked cookies, specifically white and milk chocolate chips that smelled as good as sniffing a Kinder Bueno.

"Would you like some cookies?" she asked softly as she looked into his eyes. "Children like cookies. That's what Ember said."

Gale kept Erebus raised, positioning himself between her and his friends, who were still casually munching on snacks like a standoff wasn't about to happen, which it was! "Guys! Get back! Don't eat those. They could be cursed by the ghost!"

"Gale, I said relax. We've been here for like twenty minutes already. If she wanted to kill us, we'd be dead." Mia sighed, rubbing her temple. "And put that away. It’s giving me a headache."

"But she was chasing us! She made you all disappear! This is probably the afterlife too!"

"Uh huh. So about that." Mia licked the chip dust off her fingers. "Her name is Nyx. And she took us to her apartment."

Nyx? That sounded like Witch Nyx that Kyle and Rachel mentioned. A similar entity to Witch Moura, which made sense. The being in front of him was definitely higher than a mystic or about as similar as Moura's own signature.

"Witch Nyx?" Gale asked, lowering Erebus slightly and tilting his head.

Nyx nodded, still holding the cookie tray out toward him like an offering, with a smile that caused Gale to flinch and step backwards.

"Why were you chasing us like that? You scared the bejeepers out of us!"

"I said I wanted to have a chat..." Witch Nyx said dejectedly.

"Gale. Look around." Mia gestured around the whole room.

Gale finally took a look around the whole place. The walls were covered in posters of anime guys of all kinds. Some weren't even wearing shirts which made him cringe slightly. But the one type of guy she had the most were the brooding dark-eyed ones.

A desk sat in the corner. On it, a pink PC tower with anime boy stickers. The monitor, on the other hand, had an anime paused mid-frame showing what looked like a fancy high school with a blond haired guy smiling.

Around the whole place were bookshelves. But it was not filled with the usual books Gale read. It was all manga. He did read those too, but they came in rarely in the orphanage.

In other words, she was just like him. She didn't talk to humans.

"She basically did what you did to me. Remember you chased me around the campus like an idiot with a butter knife?" Mia grumbled.

Dematerializing Erebus, Gale gulped. Technically, Mia was right. But he was just following Communications 101 he read from the internet.

Looking at Nyx, who was still standing there with the tray of cookies, her eyes covered in dark circles looked at him nervously as she moved the tray closer to him.

"Why did you smile like that?" he asked.

Witch Nyx avoided his eye contact. "Ember said... smiling makes you more approachable and friendly. So... what better way than to smile while asking for a talk?"

Gale grumbled. That was 100% logical. She did everything correctly according to Communications 101. She even told them she just wanted to talk. But there was one thing she did wrong.

"Why did you sing happy birthday then?"

"You were singing happy birthday. Was it not someone's birthday?" Witch Nyx said.

Andrew and Jacob coughed behind him. But what she said was another infallible logical defence for what she did. She did everything correctly. It was Gale's fault for not noticing earlier.

"Cookies?" Witch Nyx asked and moved the tray even closer to him.

Taking one cookie, Gale smiled back at her to show his amicableness to her. However, that caused the opposite effect. Nyx flinched backwards and looked away entirely.

"Gale, just stop smiling." Mia facepalmed. "You know what? Both of you, just don't smile from now on."

Both Gale and Nyx stopped smiling immediately.

"Can we have the cookies now?" Andrew asked from the coffee table.

"Yeah, those cookies smell great," Jacob said. "Running for your life really works up an appetite."