Return of the 13 Ghosts of Friday the 13th

Chapter I - Missing Girl

The alarm clock beeped as I woke up and gave it a snooze. I gave my body a stretch and got up and opened the curtains of my bedroom. Light came pouring through the window, making my bedroom brighter. I checked my calender app on my phone and it said "Fri 13". They say that Friday the 13th is the day of bad luck. So, I got dressed, had breakfast, brushed my teeth and went out for a drive in my 1958 Plymouth Coronado for a road trip to my destination; Gloom City. When I finally arrived, everything is so fancy and modern as I drove past them. Even when I wanted a place to stay, I went to the Atlantis Motel and booked a room for me to stay.

When I looked at the town outside, I went out for a walk through town. I walked through the streets and suddenly, I saw a sign at the Gloom City Relic Museum that says "Volunteer today!". I went into the doors and inside are old items from the past. Hundreds of them. I saw the Museum Curator and walked up to him.

"Excuse me, sir." I asked, "You don't mind if I can help you with something?"

"Well, it depends." the Museum Curator laughed, "What's your name?"

"I'm Willis Wright." I introduced myself.

He looked up to my hands and then back at my head. "Willis Wright. Okay. Here. Let me show you something."

I nodded and then we walked to a room full of old chests. All of them are from the 5th to the 19th century. Then, we stopped in front of a small wooden victorian chest box. It is black with two ghosts carved in the front and a skull in between them with a keyhole. On the sides are holy crosses; one on each side.

"Alright, Willis. You see this chest right here?" he pointed, "This is called the Chest of Dark Spirits."

"The Chest of Dark Spirits?" I got confused.

"Yes." he continued, "Whoever opens this chest on Friday the 13th will open a gate to release 13 of the most terrifying ghosts that the planet has ever seen. Now, I want you to guard the chest and always make sure no one steals it. Got it?"

"Yes sir!" I nodded. And then he left.

I know I wouldn't open the chest but a few questions came into my head. Are ghosts real? Why did he want me to secure it? What is the purpose? I kept an eye on the chest and I heard someone shout "Guys! Look! It's the Chest of Dark Spirits!". It made me jump. I turned around and saw the Komodo Brothers walking up to me. They looked at the chest and then at me.

"You're not that Josie Sakura girl. Are you?"

"Josie Sakura?" I raised my eyebrow, "Who's Josie Sakura?"

The brothers sighed, "Well. She is a prankster who used to be the guardian of the Chest of Dark Spirits. Three months ago, she brought the 13 ghosts back into the chest and saved us all. But after all that, she was missing like she never came back. Nobody knows what happened to her."

They showed me a missing poster of a girl. She has red hair and wears a pink shirt and a pair of glasses. It read, "Josie Sakura; Missing since April 18.". "I'm sorry to hear that. Maybe someday, she will come back." They nodded with forgiveness and then left.

I went back to looking after the chest but it's not there anymore. I heard footsteps running away from me so I turned and saw someone with the chest. It looked like a human-sized crow in a spacesuit. "Hey! Stop! Where are you going with that chest?!"

I began to chase the crow through the museum past the crowd of people into the storage room. When I got through the door, I saw it ran past the shelves. I continued to run after him past the shelves until I finally grabbed him by the chest and we both fell over. The crow dropped the chest and it slid across the floor and stopped.

"Get off me! Get off me you big fool!" the crow barked.

My eyes widened, "You can talk? What is your name?"

"I am Psy-Crow. The one who wanted revenge on that Earthworm Jim. Now, get off me!"

"Okay. Well, Psy-Crow. It looks like you're busted for good. So, I won't let you go." I frowned.

Psy-Crow grabbed a laser gun and blasted me away as he got up. Then he picked the chest back up and opened it.

I yelled out, "No! Stop!"

A blue glow shot out from the chest and 13 ghosts came out of the chest cheering. An orb shaped ghost with a crown on his head looked at Psy-Crow. "Thank you for setting us free again."

Psy-Crow nodded, "You're welcome, King Boo. I'm glad that I got outta prison and finally caught that girl. But, the bad news is that she escaped. Now, I want all of you to find her and Earthworm Jim."

"Well, alright. Let's find that girl and invade the universe!" King Boo laughed, and all 13 ghosts knocked some objects off the shelves letting them crash onto the floor.

I got down on the floor and covered my head with my hands as the wooden boxes and the anique objects smashed into debris all around me. When I finally got up, everything is destroyed and the 13 ghosts and Psy-Crow are gone. The security guards and the Museum Curator came in and found me as I pick up the chest.

"What just happened?!" One of the guards asked.

"The thief opened the chest and now the ghosts are free." I explained.

Their eyes widened as they looked at each other and then back at me. "13 ghosts? From the Chest of Dark Spirits?"

We heard a laugh from behind the shelves. Then suddenly, a clown-like ghost appeared jumping through the shelves right over us and onto the floor.

"Guess who? It's me; Marx! I'm back!" He looked at me and the chest that I'm holding, "First, Josie Sakura has the chest. And now, you. It looks it's time for you to feel the fear of Marx Soul!"

We watched him transform as we backed away. I held the chest tightly in my hands as the ghost's transformation is complete. His wings are now dark red, have three claws on each wing, the hearts on them are bright blue, and the tips of the wings are larger as well. His eyes are now much more menacing, where he has a tiny pupil surrounded by a single thin lavender-colored iris. The pompoms on his hat are large and have spikes on the top, whereas in his original form they were small and round. The ends of his shoes are pointy, his mouth is wider with an elongated tongue that hangs out of it like a dog, and larger fangs. Marx Soul also wears a tarnished gold necklace around his neck. The colors on Marx Soul's hat are dark magenta on the left side and sky blue on the right side. He is also dark purple. He began to charge right at us as I put my finger on the chest lid nerously.

"Here I come. Time to be clowned!" Soul Marx laughed evilly. But I opened the chest and charged at him and he accidentally flew straight into the chest. I fell over onto my belly as I quickly closed the chest and locked it. I looked at the guards and the Museum Curator who are having surprised looks on their faces.

"I can't you caught the first ghost! But too bad the twelve other ghosts got away." he sighed.

I nodded. "Don't worry: I'll find the rest of them. I'll just get into my car and start searching for them. Trust me." I left the Gloom City Relic Museum, put on my wizard cape, hopped into my car and began to drive while bringing the Chest of Dark Spirits with me on a search for the other 12 ghosts.

End of Chapter I