Ghosts, Ghouls, and High School Fools

Ghosts, Ghouls, and High School Fools [7]

The bed was actually fairly comfy considering it's probably the seventeenth century. I fall asleep quickly and wake up even quicker.

I bolt up in bed, my hair mussed and my dress twisted around my legs. It's dark, the darkest night I've ever seen. But, what woke me was screaming. I race to the window and look out. An ominous orange glow lights up the sky and the screaming grows louder.

I run out of the room, looking for Jonathon or his mom. Jonathon's nowhere to be seen, but as I turn a corner, I see her sitting in the kitchen.

"Ma'am, what's going on?" I ask, out of breath.

She looks at me, her eyes sad. "He's broken loose...he chose him...of all them, he chose Jonathon." She sobs, tears running down her cheek.

I rush to her side. "Who's loose? Who has Jonathon?"

"You must stop him, hurt him, destroy him. It's the only way," she looks at me, the tears doing nothing to smother the fierce look in her eyes, "I brought you here for a reason. You had to meet him before tonight."

"What?" I step away.

"I had to show you. You had to know. The minute you came, I knew you were the one," she grabs my wrist, placing her palm on it. A light flashes beneath her skin. "You are linked with him. Only you can save him."

My wrist is covered in a swirling design made of pinpoints, like needles. "I...I don't understand."

She rips a ring of her finger and shoves it on mine. "This will help. You already have the necklace and the circlet. Now it's complete."

I scream as pain erupts around my finger. I try to pull it off but it doesn't budge; if anything, it just gets tighter.

Jonathon's mom stands. She grasps my face on her hands and kisses my forehead and both cheeks. "I have faith in you. You will succeed. At midnight, you will return to your time."

I'm speechless. A thousand confused thoughts race around my head.

"Go. Now!" she shoves me out the door.

Not knowing what else to do, I run.

I can smell something horrible, horrible enough that I don't really want to know what it is. The more I run, the louder the screams become.

I run into the village and what I see makes me turn my head and vomit. Piles and piles of torn bodies litter the square. Blood covers the ground and buildings like it rained. I can feel the spirits, hundreds of them, rising.

Suddenly, I feel breath on the back of my neck. I stop breathing and my skin freezes.

"Such a silly girl," a finger touches my temple and runs down my face, my neck, to the collar of my dress, hooking there. Another hand reaches up and brushes a fistful of hair away from my face. I feel a nose nuzzle the crook of my neck, breathing deeply as it reaches my ear.

"Do you know what happens to silly girls?"

I had been trying very hard not to allow the connection between my skin and his to spark, but it does. Images of blood, pain, death, ripping flesh...

I scream, feeling the pain of those he killed, cursing this gift.

His hand covers my mouth and he drags me to the center of the square. He twists me around until I face him.

Jonathon.

It's Jonathon.

Except, it's not.

His eyes are red and hollow, but blazing. His skin paler, his teeth more animalistic, his fingers clawed. A flash of Vikter Tridesci's face in Jonathon's makes me think. This can't be Jonathon.

'... A curse. It's supposed to take Vikter's soul and divide it, placing a small bit of him in every firstborn son of the Tridesci family in hopes to make him immortal...'

'...curse...'

'...He's broken loose...he chose him...of all them, he chose Jonathon...'

'...You had to know...'

'...Only you can save him...'

"Jonathon," I say, "Jonathon!"

The eyes flicker from red to blue, back and forth.

"THERE IS NO JONATHON!" a dark voice fills my head.

"I know you can hear me, Jonathon!" I ignore the voice.

"THERE IS NO JONATHON!"

The spirits stir. I can feel them coming closer, I'm aware of their link to me, giving me strength. A burning rushes through my limbs. They circle us, like a barrier of light.

"WHAT'S HAPPENING?"

Jonathon's looking at the barrier, rage and confusion on his blood covered face. His eyes continue to flicker. His hand moves away from my face to wrap around my neck as the red takes over.

"Jonathon!" I call weakly, "This isn't you!"

"THIS IS ME!"

The spirits rush around us, moving in closer and closer until I'm covered with their light. The burning becomes excruciating.

Out of nowhere, I feel someone behind me, resting their hands on my shoulder, as if to support me.

"Only you can save him," Jonathon's mom's voice reaches my ears and I know it's her behind me.

"I don't know how!"

"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust..."

"I don't understand!"

"Ashes to ashes..."

All of a sudden, my hands ignite in green flames. The arms of Jonathon's mom reach around me, taking my wrist in her hands.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

The eyes flick to blue and connect with mine and everything seems to stop. I see Jonathon, the real Jonathon, the one that kissed me only hours ago, looking at me.

"Help me!"

My hand thrusts towards him, the spirits surrounding the green flames. My body leaps, my fingers wrapping around Jonathon's neck. I fly forward.

A second Jonathon, one with glowing eyes, is still in my grasp, separating from the body as a ghostly image with a burst of blinding light. I slam him down to the ground. Behind me, I hear the body collapse.

The ghost writhes under my hand, screaming at an unnatural high pitch, as the fire burns brighter.

Then, Jonathon's mother is standing over me.

"You did well," she unfurls my fingers, replacing them with hers as purple flames spurt from her palm.

She looks at me once more, "They chose well."

She wraps her arms around the ghost, the purple fire engulfing them both. Her screams match the ghosts and I know she's dying. Tears pour down my cheeks.

Great black vines sprout from the ground, wrapping around her burning figure, covering her. A sound like thunder booms, making me cover my ears and I look away.

The only sound is my uneven breathing. I open my eyes.

The village is gone. I'm kneeling in a field of scorched ground and in front of me is a tree. It's black, covered in thorns instead bark, with long, reaching branches like twisted fingers. I can feel the smallest pulse of energy from it, horrible dark energy.

I look behind me and see Jonathon's body sprawled on the ground. I jerk to my feet and run to his side.

"Jonathon!" I touch my fingers to his neck and I almost start crying in relief when I feel a pulse. Spent, I fall forward, my head against his shoulder. I cry.

Somewhere, a clock strikes midnight.