A Twisted Halloween II: Spectral Soiree

Chapter 3: Burying the Lede

Soon, Jamil, Silver, and Jack walk through the door that Silver opens, and closes the door behind them. Soon enough, the door leads them to a very different place, where there are fallen trees, bushes, and a full glowing moon. This place is called Wailing Woods.

"Now we're in a forest dimension! Silver says.

"All we did was open a door, and it punted us somewhere completely different," Jack says.

Then turns to the others, "You guys warned me about the sudden shift, but I'm still freaked up. The Spectral Realm's wild."

"Remember, the ghosts possess you when you let them surprise you. So keep it together, unless you enjoy embarrassing yourself," Jamil says.

"Wha... No ghost's getting the jump on me again!" Jack protests.

He then says with confidence, "Anyway, I know how to navigate the forest. Don't worry, I'll take point on this."

"You've spent a lot of time in the woods?" Silver asks.

"Yeah. I'm from the northern Shaftlands. The area I grew up in is all forests. I've got a good sense of which spots are dangerous, where enemies could hide, and where they might try to ambush us," Jack explains.

"That's good to know. I'm much the same," Silver says.

"Really? So you grew up in the woods too?" Jack asks, surprised.

"Yes, I used to -" Silver says.

But Jamil says, "Hold on."

"Hm?" Silver questions.

"Is this going to be another hero story? Or some tale about your father?" Jamil questions with a slight frown.

"No, I was actually going to talk about my own experience," Silver answers.

"Oh, good. I was half-expecting another tall tale. I'm sure a personal experience will be more grounded in reality. Please, continue. Talking to us might help you stay awake," Jamil says.

"That's very considerate of you. I was actually getting a bit drowsy," Silver replies.

Then Silver explains, "I grew up in a small cabin in the mountains, some distance from Briar Valley's castle town. My father loved to travel, and he occasionally took extended trips. So he'd leave me to take care of the cabin in his absence. No one else lived near us, but thanks to the dense woodland, I never felt lonely."

"He left a child to fend for himself. It must've been a pretty peaceful patch of forest," Jamil replies.

"Yeah, sounds like a nice, safe environment," Jack adds.

"Oh, it was. I kept myself busy every day," Silver answers.

Then explains, "I'd spend my morning training, then do housework in the afternoon. I'd go to the lake and fish, till the fields, tend to the crops... Gather strawberries, play with my animal friends... Fight bears, things like that."

That last part has Jamil and Jack shocked.

Jamil cries out, "Wait, back up!"

"You fought BEARS?!" Jack exclaims.

"That's right," Silver answers.

"Nothing about that is remotely safe or peaceful!" Jack says, still shocked.

"Burying the lede, once again. What kind of situation led to -" Jamil questions.

But Silver silenced him, "Wait, quiet!"

The three remain silent and see a well dressed ghost floating around, a short distance away from them.

The ghost searches as he sings, "La la la... Where, oh where could a mirror fragment be..."

"A ghost!" Jack says, surprised.

This makes Jack angry and he walks to the ghost to confront him.

Jack angrily says, "HEY. I don't appreciate what you did to me!"

"Pardon?" The ghost asks and turns to Jack. "But I haven't done anything to you. You must have the wrong ghost."

Jamil and Silver approach Jack from behind.

However, Jack says, "You're looking for mirror fragments, which means you're one of the boss' minions, right? I got a bone to pick with all of you!"

And Jack dashes off to chase after the ghost.

Silver says in shock, "Jack's starting a fight with a ghost. We better help him!"

"Just when your story was getting interesting..." Jamil says.

Then questions, "Why must Jack dive headfirst into trouble?"

He then says, "Fine, let's wrap this quickly!"

Jamil and Silver then rush to Jack to help him with the ghost problem.