by R A Baxter
She took a moment to catch her breath and rested her hands on her hips. “Back there, you said the Ghost Knights were coming back. Are they coming to help Abby? Is she still here? She’s my sister. You might know her as Abigail.”
Jeb pursed his chapped lips and looked at her, raising an eyebrow. Jack and Clara caught up to them and stood waiting for his response.
“Aye, I know the ghost they call Abagail. Ye best let her be, miss.”
“But she’s my sister.”
Jeb wagged his head slowly. “Breaks me heart to say it, miss, but the sister ye knew is no more. ’Tis certain what’s left o’ her shall bring ye not but sorrow. Her soul already was nigh at rest ’til it were rumored that the vermin, Farley, returned to these woods. The knights be returning to finish him off, then yer Abagail will be no more. As I says, let her be.”
Katie smiled. “I can’t just ignore her. Can you take us to her?”
Jeb shook his head. “Sorry, miss. She roams where she pleases.”
“Could the Ghost Knights take us to her? That’s what they’re here for, isn’t it?”
“Ye’ve much to learn ’bout ghosts, me friend. They won’t be doing ye no favors. Revenge is what matters to them—and yer sister is like-minded. If we run across them, ’tis certain they’ll wake ye. They won’t be hindered, even fer their own kin.”
“You have to take us to her.”
Jeb stared at Katie for a second, then glanced down at the black pouch hanging from his belt. He grabbed it and squeezed it hard, yanked open the tie string, and pulled out the little fettered man and dangled him by his head. Jeb shook the little figure violently, his eye’s dark with hate, his face reddened and contorted, and his teeth clenched.
Katie gasped and her hands flew to her face, the change in Jeb’s demeanor hardly registering as possible.
“What are you doing?” Clara’s eyes bulged.
The little fettered man kicked and writhed, moaning in agony, the weight of the heavy stone stretching his arms and arching his back. The tiny magpies swarmed around him and pecked at his face and bared chest without mercy.
“Stop! Please let me go,” said his tiny voice. “Forgive me, please.”
“That’s the pouch I found.” Jack pointed at it and glared at Jeb. “What’s wrong with you? What is that?”
Jeb looked at each of the teenagers in turn, his face ashen, and a kindly grin returned to his face.
“I saw that pouch fall from your belt when you leaped over a hedge,” the frog said to Jack. “I came across Mr. Colton later and told him where it was. Old acquaintance of mine, you know.”
“’Tain’t real,” Jeb said. He shook the tiny man one more time and shoved him and the stone block back into the pouch, the birds flying in on their own. “Sorry I had to show ye that, but it had to be done. Ghosts is all that be ugly in this world. Even I cain’t escape what I became when I died.”
“But it’s so awful,” Clara said.
“’Tain’t more awful than what that vermin did to me little Alice. The little man in this pouch be me son-in-law, or rather, I created it to look like the ol’ scoundrel. He deserves everything I can think on to torture him. He killed me little granddaughter, then killed me when I tried to make him pay fer it. I need this pouch to stay a ghost. If ever I quit a-thinkin’ on what that monster did to her, ’tis certain I’ll fade away. I cain’t hold meself together without thinkin’ on it.”
“Then maybe you should move on,” Clara said. “It’s just too horrible.”
Jeb frowned. A stone appeared behind him, at just the right height to sit on, and he sat down. “I don’t expect ye to understand, miss. Ye wasn’t there that night. I returned home early and heard a curious noise in me attic, a whimperin’ sound. I took me rifle, went up the stairs, and there he was, the husband o’ me oldest daughter, a demon if there ever was one, standin’ by me little Alice. I cain’t tell ye what I saw, ’tis certain to bring ye nightmares to the end o’ ye days. There be me little Alice, a layin’ there, nigh dead. I raised me rifle, but that devil be quicker than an old man. Never saw what he hit me with.”
“And you became a ghost,” Clara said.
“That be certain. I dreamed, but I had no other thought than to save me little Alice. I forced meself back to that room and saw me own body layin’ there dead on the floor. That devil took one look at me and high-tailed it like a coward, leavin’ me little Alice to die alone in that dreary attic. There I stayed, at me haunt, watchin’ me daughter collapse over me, me Alice in despair, watchin’ them take me own body away, watchin’ them take her innocent little body away forever. There I waited, day after day, for the smallest hope of avenging her. Never saw that devil again.”
Clara frowned and placed a hand gently on Jeb’s shoulder. He held it tight.
“It’s too horrible to imagine,” Katie said. “It’s got to be destroying you inside.”
“That it has done, miss. I don’t deny it. That be my point. Nary a ghost exists that hasn’t been destroyed inside.”
“But that happened a century ago,” Jack said. “He had to have died decades ago.”
“’Tis true. I suppose I could move on if I had proof he died in some horrible way, but I cain’t let go o’ the hope that he could still be around here somewhere, wanderin’ about like me, as a ghost.”
“So, you came up with that pouch, so you could look for him,” Katie said.
“Them Ghost Knights taught me that trick. They heard rumors of a haunted house in these parts and paid me a visit. They taught me to shape this pouch, so I could think on me revenge anywhere, without having to stay near me haunt. Certain, ’tis nothin’ to be proud of.”
“We better keep moving,” Jack said. “I’m not feeling too good.”
“Cain’t say I disagree.” Jeb stood and the rock he was sitting on disappeared. The frog laid back against Clara’s hair and she followed Jeb. Katie moved aside so Jack could walk in front of her.
Jeb looked back as he walked. “Perhaps I should’ve told ye, there’s been other Aspects a searchin’ fer ye.”
“I know,” Jack said. “I met some soldiers earlier.”
“They be soldiers a dreamin’. Them scoundrels at Farley’s camp find old soldiers and make ’em think they’re fighting a war just to get ’em to do their work for them. There be others searchin’ for ye as well. Some o’ yer kin, I gathered.”
“My kin?” Jack stopped walking.
“I come across some strangers. Looked to be of the orient. They were flying through the sky like a flock o’ pigeons, then they landed aside o’ me and said they were lookin’ fer a boy by the name o’ Jack Park. Do I gather rightly, that be you?”
Jack nodded and looked at Katie. They both knew who they might be. “They were looking for me?” He limped to Jeb’s side.
“’Tis certain, nothin’ to be concerned about, Master Park. They told me they was concerned fer ye. Cain’t say where they flew off to.”
Jack shook his head. “Before I came to camp, I was having nightmare about an old Oriental woman and her followers. They’re not my friends.”
Katie rushed to Jack’s side and wrapped her arm around his back. “They won’t have me tied up this time. We’ll face them together if they show up.”
“I’m here, too,” Clara said.
“Let’s just get out of here,” Jack said.
“That, we can do.” Jeb stared at Clara for a moment and turned.
“Why do you keep doing that?” Katie turned to Jeb. “You keep staring at Clara.”
“Me apologies, miss. I meant no harm. It’s just that, your Clara looks just like me little Alice. Dead ringer she is. Truth be told, ’twas her that convinced me to take ye to me haunt. I wouldn’t have done it otherwise.”
The frog jerked suddenly on Clara’s shoulder, then stood up and stared off to their right, into the trees. “Someone’s coming. I suggest we make haste for the shrubs.”
Jeb turned to Katie. “’Tis good luck to have a
Nightmare round when ye be on the run. They have extraordinary senses. Shall we move faster, or do ye want me to wake you up?” He half raised his rifle.
“Let’s keep moving,” Katie said.
They marched on for another ten minutes, everyone lost in their own thoughts except the frog, who never stopped talking. “Ah, we approach a clearing. Watch for hawks. They’re carnivorous, you know.”
“How about you worry about hawks!” Jack jabbed his crutch into the soil. “We’ll worry about being hunted by a sadistic old woman’s cult, an army of oblivious troops with guns, a revenge-obsessed squadron of Ghost Knights, and a blood-thirsty ghost that can create attack vehicles out of thin air.”
Katie frowned at him.
“I’m sorry,” Jack said. “I’m just so tired. I’m hungry, my ribs hurt, and I keep losing my breath. I’m stressed out, and that frog just keeps jabbering on, like we want the whole forest to know where we are.”
“We’re all stressed,” Katie said. “Let’s catch up to Jeb and see if he’ll let us rest a few minutes.”
“Maybe he knows where we can get something to eat.” Clara skipped along the narrow trail to catch up with him.
Heavy tree growth sandwiched the pathway. Jeb stopped at the top of the inclining path where the tree line ended and leaned on his walking stick, scanning the open forest in front of him. Jack and Katie caught up to him and Clara.
They stood at a flattened ridge where they could see for miles. To their left, the receding tips of pine trees poked up from the sunken terrain of a deep ravine. Katie welcomed the peaceful gargling of an unseen river she heard rolling along the base of the ravine. Straight ahead, a thin line of chimney smoke rose beyond the distant trees before a backdrop of hazy mountains. To their right, larch trees and lodgepoles formed a ring around a vast open meadow.
A hawk glided above the waving yellow grasses, curved upward, and darted over the gulley to their left.
“Yonder be Silverton.” Jeb pointed at rising smoke. “Won’t be long now, if ye can stay asleep another hour.”
The frog stood up and leaped from Clara’s shoulder, then circled in front of Jeb. “The riders are coming!” He stared back down the trail. “They have that Avard fellow with them.”
Jack stared down the trail but couldn’t see anyone. He leaned over to address the little frog. “You sure it’s the Ghost Knights?”
“Are you blind?” If frogs had eyebrows, he would’ve been raising them at him. “There’s a black mist emerging from the trees. How do you dreamers survive? We need to run. There’s a river down this hill. If we hurry, we can jump in it and hide under the rocks.”
“We’re not frogs,” Jack said.
“Them Knights have no business with us. ’Tis certain Mr. Avard’s bringing them. Ye may have to head to Silverton without me. I’ll make ye a hideout.” Jeb looked around, then focused on a low mound in the meadow ten feet to his right. “This spot’ll do.”
“They’ll see us for miles around,” Jack said.
“No one’ll think to look for ye out in the open.” Jeb held his arms forward and squinted his eyes. The tall grass faded away on the mound in a ten-foot-wide circle, and the exposed soil sunk four feet straight down, creating a cylindrical impression in the earth. The domed crown of a huge buried boulder, covered with patches of orange lichen, appeared over the hole, its edges digging into the surrounding terrain. No one could’ve guessed the boulder hadn’t lain buried there since the dawn of time.
“You’re good,” Jack said. “Avard kept fading away when he created things. You don’t do that.”
“You learn a few tricks wandering Essentia nigh on to a century. That rock may look solid, but it’s actually thinner than a cow’s hide. Hardly took an ounce o’ me essence. No more squawking now. I shaped this hideout just fer the three o’ ye.”
“What about you?” Clara’s face showed concern.
“Avard knows I’m taking ye to me haunt. I’ll have to convince them knights I have no interest in ye. You’ll have to head there without me. My haunt be in the attic of the grandest house on the main street, an old clapboard home, dull blue in color. When I’m gone, head toward that smoke. The river’ll lead ye to it.”
“Avard will try to hurt you,” Katie said.
“I can deal with him. Now make haste. Climb into the hideout.”
The frog hopped onto the stone, stomped three times, and turned around frowning. “Not to put too fine a point on it, but I’ve found hiding on top of solid rocks to be less than effective.”
“That hideout taint fer you, frog. Get on down to the river and hide. Them horses will notice the tiniest sounds, and from what I’ve been hearin’, ye ain’t nothin’ if not a noisemaker.”
The frog glared at Jeb for a few seconds, then nodded and gave him a wry smile. “They’re almost here.” He scurried down the hill in lengthy leaps.
“Alright, young’uns, be quick. I know it looks solid, but the three of ye can step right on through it. Careful now.”
Jack limped to the rock and attempted to step onto it, his foot landing on nothing but air. He dropped his crutch, flailed his arms, and fell through the stone lid, landing four feet down on his hands and knees onto a hard granite floor. He rolled onto his side and found a stone ledge along the perimeter of the circular space, just right for sitting on. He slid his hand over the soft brown, black, and white rabbit furs that covered the floor. Looked up, he saw only the yellow-gray overcast sky, the lid being invisible from below.
“You alright there, Master Jack?” Jeb peered down at him, though Jack knew he saw nothing but rock.
“I’m fine.” Jack stood up straight, a sheepish expression on his reddened face, his upper half protruding above the stone. Clara and Katie grinned and looked at each other, prompting Jack to look down at his chest. He smiled too, realizing how odd he looked with nothing but a legless torso sitting on a slightly domed stone.
“This is awesome,” Jack said.
“Hurry now!” Jeb patted Clara and Katie on their backs. “If they see you, we’re done fer. I’ll have to wake ye.”
Clara and Katie approached the stone lid and sat on the edge, their legs disappearing through the rock. They then jumped the remaining few feet into the cylindrical chamber, their heads still visible above the lid.
“They’re here,” Jeb said. “Duck down and make ye selves comfortable. Don’t make a peep. If it be in the cards, I’ll meet ye at me haunt.”
Jack sat down on the ledge and Katie sat next to him, Clara taking a seat on the other side of Katie. Subtle protrusions along the false stone lid rose up just enough to allow them to see what was happening above ground. Clara smiled wide when Jeb stepped onto the stone above them. He seemed to be walking in the air.
Jack motioned the girls not to make a sound. A rolling black mist billowed through the trees from the trail and concealed the hooves of the black steeds that galloped noiselessly toward Jeb. A paralyzing fear enveloped Jack. He couldn’t have made a sound if he wanted to.
The riders wore blackened steel helmets held aloft by the sinuous strands of their dark bodies—strands that moved, stretched, and twisted in the air. Sharp metal gauntlets encased their huge hands, their feet melding with the mist. The horses circled around Jeb, many of them hovering above the hideout before coming to a stop. The lead rider approached Jeb and turned his shadowy face toward him.
Avard rode up next to the leader and pointed at Jeb, his lower legs hidden in the dark mist. He dismounted and strutted up to Jeb, putting his face within inches of Jeb’s grizzled beard. “Where are they?”
“You mean them young’uns?” Jeb shook his head. “They done woke up ages ago.”
“Liar! They’re Dream Running and you know it. Where’re they hiding?” Avard looked around, stopping in turns to study every patch of trees where someone could be concealed.
Jeb looked up at the lead rider. “Good day to ye, Master Ezekiel. I see ye found the gift I left fer ye. I caught this feller br
ingin’ terror down on a few young’uns a-dreamin’. He thinks he’s a ghost, but he ain’t got the haunt to prove it.”
“I was killed at Abigail’s haunt, you fool. Jack Park murdered me. Tell me where you’re hiding him, or I’ll tear you to pieces!”
“Ye hear that, Ezekiel? This wingnut thinks he can kill an Aspect. Tis certain he just wants to feed off their fear. Every child deserves a sweet dream.”
“They’re not dreamers!”
“Like I said, they done woke up, fer the love o’ Pete.”
Avard bolted at Jeb, wrapped his hands around his neck and shaking him. He lowered his right hand long enough to form a pistol in it. Before he could fire it, however, the Ghost Knight nearest to Ezekiel wheeled his long wooden lance toward Avard and a dark gray mist shot at him from its tip. Gray fog engulfed Avard’s body and he shot ten feet into the air, his arms and legs stretched taut by chains of smoke that pulled him into the shape of an X. His pistol dropped from his outstretched fingers and clanked into the ground.
Jack knew no one could see through the stone lid above him, but that didn’t make him feel any less anxious, staring up at a man who wanted him dead.
Avard couldn’t budge. “Let me go!”
“Thou shalt not harm the old man.” Ezekiel’s powerful deep voice echoed throughout the clearing. “We of the Emend Delegation have need of his haunt. Destroy him and thou shalt perish.”
“Fine. Fine. I’ll leave him alone. I just want my revenge! You people swore to help ghosts like me. Make him tell me where them rodents ran off to!”
“Mr. Colton is a man of his word,” Ezekiel said. “Thou seeketh a boy who slept and hath now awoken.”
“He’s a liar! They’re Dream Runners. They’re Material beings.”
“Cease with this absurdity!” Ezekiel turned his steed toward Avard. “A Material body cannot survive in Essentia. ’Tis clear that thou art mad.”
“So, what if I am? You’re the Ghost Knights of the Emend Delegation—sworn to bring peace to the souls of all ghost-kind. Park killed me, and I deserve your services as much as that Abagail woman does.”