- So...
- Hmmm...
- There's nothing I can do...
[https://i.imgur.com/9oFstab.png]
Mat was standing under a large tree in the backyard of Mr. Crowell's house. He was talking to an all-white humanoid figure, wearing weathered white robes. Her face could not be seen.
- Mrs. Crowell, what should I do? - Mat said, after resting his hand on the tree.
Inside the house, Mr. Crowell was lying down and had a dark aura around him.
Mathias, being a psychic, or something similar, and having more spiritual sensitivity than most people, could see strange things. Occasionally he could see ghosts and interact with them, and while some were abominable creatures, they didn't do anything to him (most of the time), rather they seemed to be afraid of him. Another thing is that Mat couldn't exorcise them either, but he could hurt them just by touching them, but not by touching them with his PSI Creations and, apparently, if he touched them with his left arm, he did severe damage to them.
At this time he was talking to the ghost of Mrs. Crowell. As I mentioned before, she passed away a few months ago. But...
The day of the funeral.
Mat was outside the village church, standing in front of the building (he didn't have the courage to go inside). Two of the Crowell couple's three children had come to visit their father, only because their mother had passed away. She had been in a coma for two weeks after having a stroke and, for some reason, slipped into a coma days after falling, in an accident. She had been hospitalized in the city, but... Well, she was being buried in the town where she lived.
The Crowell couple were friends with Mat's mother and uncle, and because of this Mat was very fond of them and... Despite this, he didn't deign to be at the funeral, since he had almost never spoken to Mrs. Crowell, and now... It was now impossible for him to do so.
And so... Although it was his wife's funeral, Mr. Crowell was not present. According to Mat, he did not attend because of grief.
At that time there were several people saying goodbye to her, including Mat's mother, who seemed to be very saddened by the passing of her friend (besides the fact that she had been in a coma for two weeks).
Despite witnessing this, Mat decided to leave. This may be very inconsiderate of him, but... Mat actually withdrew because he wanted to check on Mr. Crowell.
.
..
...
After arriving at the house, he stood for a moment in thought (he was literally still on the sidewalk, the house was a few feet away). He thought about what he was going to say to Mr. Crowell. About that...
- Uh... Huh?
Mathias noticed a spectral figure on the porch of the house.
- Uh... Who are you?
The figure turned to look at him.
- Mhmmsmmmh... - these are strange sounds.
- No... Seriously, who are you?
The figure made strange noises again. A couple of people walked by and saw Mathias talking to... Nobody, they looked at him funny.
- I... I...
"That voice... isn't she?"
And yes, it was her.
The figure, after realizing that Mathias discovered her identity, went to the backyard of the village, Mat following her even though she had gone to visit Mr. Crowell.
Once behind, she stood under the large tree behind the house. She stood there for a while, as if calling out to him. He came closer.
- You know, you're not the first ghost I've seen... And so... - said Mathias, who began to measure his words after realizing he sounded a bit abrupt. - D-do you have some resentment or something that you couldn't do before... you know?
- I-I...
- ... - Mat was waiting for me to say something.
- I don't know... I don't know why I'm here right now either.
"Gee, I don't remember her talking like that."
- I...
- You do?
- I just know that my death wasn't from natural causes.
"What?"
Suddenly, Mrs. Crowell... Well, her ghost, pointed toward the house and said:
- A dark energy was what made me fall ill, I could barely see it as I grew weaker... It was like a dark aura around my head... and, by the time I wanted to tell my husband about it, I...
- I see... So that's why that happened to you and you were in a coma for two weeks? - Mat replied. - Wait, what?
- My husband is suffering from the same thing now?
- What? - Mathias shouted and rushed to Mr. Crowell.
He entered through the front door, as it was closer to Mr. Crowell at the time.
When the latter received him, he greeted him mournfully and made his way back to the rocking chair in which he had been sitting a few moments ago. As Mathias passed the room he was in, the door of which was open, he said to him:
- Mr. Crowell, I'm going to use the kitchen. I'm going to make some tea, okay?
- Do that, please...
- Ok.
When Mathias saw him, he tried to see if there was anything strange about it... But he didn't succeed. When he reached the kitchen, Mrs. Crowell's ghost appeared to him and asked:
- Did you manage to see anything?
- Absolutely nothing. - Mat replied instantly.
- L-look at it again.
- All right, but... After I'm done with this, okay?
- ...
The ghost didn't say anything back.
"Ok..."
After a while he finished preparing the tea, but not before fixing some messy things in the house.
He went to the room where he was and they tasted a cup of tea each, while... Mathias tried to comfort Mr. Crowell.
While that was going on, Mrs. Crowell's ghost said to him.
- Watch him carefully.
Mat didn't answer and started to observe him... And he noticed a dark aura around his heart.
He chatted a while longer with the gentleman, then said goodbye to him and headed for the tree in his yard.
- So... What should I do? - Mathias asked.
- I... I don't know.
- I understand... When was the first time you felt sick?
- I... I... I don't remember.
"Then what am I going to do?"
- I... I don't want the same thing to happen to my husband. You know very well that we weren't very close, but... I wouldn't want his life to end up like mine. I wouldn't want his life to end like mine. He's a good man, and you know it, so... Please...
- I... I... Well, I was the first person who could see you, so that's why you're asking for my help, isn't it? Okay, maybe I'll...
- It's not like that... Since I saw you coming, I saw a golden aura around you, different from that of people. It seems that now... No, I'd better not...
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
"...What?"
Despite that somewhat strange conversation, Mathias decided to do everything he could to save Mr. Crowell from what was happening to him. But...
- So...
- Hmmm...
- There's nothing I can do...
We came back to the present.
- I'm sorry... Despite everything, I couldn't figure out the cause of all this...
- It's not like it's your fault either...
- ...
- Although... I did notice one thing. I don't know if you noticed, but I lost part of my memories...
- You did?
- I've... I've... I never...
- Hey!
- AH! - he got really scared
The one who said "hey" was Erin. She had approached him unnoticed and startled him.
- Hey, what's wrong with you? You look like you've seen a ghost.
Mat made a face at her like, "Are you serious?"
- N-nothing. It's just... what are you doing here?
- I came to see what you've been up to the last few days.
- I see... So that means... You were spying on me?
- Call it what you want. So, what were you doing here? You haven't told me yet.
- Well... That's...
- It doesn't matter. The thing is that I came to take you to my house, there's something that... I want you to taste. - said Erin, who got a little nervous almost at the end.
- Oh, right, but... - Mat told her, and added. - Wait, taste something? Don't tell me that...
- Yeah, yeah... Let's just go! - Erin said, and began to pull Mat's left arm, looking straight ahead. - I know you're going to like it...
Erin had seen Mrs. Crowell's ghost.
After screaming, she let go of Mat's left arm, and the ghost disappeared. Erin, frightened by what she had just seen, said to Mat:
- Oi, w-what was that?!
- What was that? But there's not...
- Don't play dumb! That's why you were here... Weren't you?!
- Well...
- I can't see it now, and I couldn't see iywhen I got here either, so... - Erin told him, and grabbed his hand, left, tightly.
- Hey...
- ...Now I can see it.
- You're... You are... - said the ghost to Erin.
- I'm... I'm who? - asked Erin. "That voice... Is it?"
- ...You're the rough and tumble girl who's Mathias' friend, or am I wrong? I do remember you, wow.
- ...Couldn't you have described me better? Wait, you are? - Erin said, having recognized the voice, although from beyond the grave, it was similar.
- That's her. - Mat replied, interrupting her.
- Oh... I see...
Mat explained the whole situation to Erin.
- Oh, I understand. But...
- Yes, um...
- ... - the ghost.
- But the thing is, he's alive, still. - said Erin.
- Don't say it like that!
- Sorry... But that's the thing, he's alive. That's why we still have time to do something for him... Although it's not like he's going to live too l...
- Don't finish it, please. - Mat interrupted her, and thought, "WE still?"
- Sorry again... - Erin said, and again grabbed his arm to see the ghost. - And well, I'm going to help Mat see what we can do, what do you think?
- Okay, but... - said the ghost.
- But... But what? -said Erin.
- ... - Mat looked at her strangely. Erin didn't even respect the dead apparently.
- I was about to tell Mathias something important, but you came along and I couldn't do it, but I'll do it now...
- O-okay, I'm sorry... - said Erin.
- I... I think I have a grudge and that's why I haven't been able to leave this realm yet.
- Is that it? Ouch, hey! - Erin said- getting a not-so-strong nudge from Mat.
- I... I never thanked my husband for all he did for me and my children. He may not have been a great person, but he was as good as he could be, he went out of his way for us, but I... I was shy all my life and was never able to express my true feelings to anyone, I think that's why I was not close with him or my children... I wish I had been different, but... It's too late now.
- It is. Gotcha! - Erin exclaimed, and braced herself for the nudge Mat was about to give her.
- Hmph.
- ...
- Sorry again, I won't do it again...
- ...It's okay. - the ghost replied.
They were silent for a few moments.
- But anyway, I'm going to help Mr. Crowell, even if I don't know him very well. - Erin said, sounding motivated.
- Me too, since I feel like this is something I should do (I don't know why.) - said Mat. - Besides I do know him.
- I really appreciate it, but... what exactly are you going to do? - asked Mrs. Crowell's ghost.
- It's true... In these months I didn't manage to find any clue, other than that this could be influence of another spirit (Which seems obvious)... But I think that was because I was trying to do everything alone, heh. - said Mathias. - Ah, plus I also found some people who had those auras, and I tried to investigate them more, but I only found out things I already knew. Other than that, I didn't find anything.
The thing is that one of those times, Mathias had also found the creature that supposedly would have caused that, but... He lost sight of it easily. He didn't manage to recognize it, even though it was like a sphere.
- Maybe with some help I could try to save him, but... - looked at Erin - If the cause is a specter and not a simple ghost, only I will be able to do something about it... And those who can see ghosts too, I think... Besides... Ah!
Mat realized something, but... Before that, Mat knew about the existence of specters, but he didn't understand how he knew that (this talking about when he was smaller, since, as an adult, he discovered that they did exist, in a way, after researching, although I don't remember if I already mentioned this).
- What's up? - Erin said.
- This... Wait! Let me get my words in order, - said Mat.
- Ok.
- Well... Mmm... You see... - said Mat, hesitantly. - I think... Mrs. Crowell.
- Yes?
- That happened to you days after you had an accident, right? So... As I recall, there have been many accidents, and some of them, the most current ones, those involved perished days or months later.
- That's true! But... That's... What does it have to do with this? No, wait... This is very similar! - said Erin.
- Exactly! - said Mat. - So... The thing about it being caused by a spirit? It definitely has to be that!
- It makes sense... - said Mrs. Crowell.
- Yes, but now... what do we do? - Erin said, a little worried. She was still holding Mat's hand, well... By the arm.
- The only thing we can do now is to investigate further.
- Yes... Now that I realize it, this... This escalated pretty quickly, don't you think? - said Erin.