“That’s mine.” Kaji said looking at the styling gel. He kept the gel in his pocket.
Seiya opened the cupboard to see two wax dolls and candles. There were a lot of spider webs too. There were brass containers and pebbles.
After having a look at all the things, I decided it was time to go back.
In the tent, somehow, we started talking about Won. Seiya believed that Won, an ancient spirit monster was the owner of that mansion.
“He was pretty famous. There are a lot of myths surrounding him. He lived two hundred years ago.” Seiya said.
Kaji agreed and then went on. He said that people say Won possessed the power to communicate with spirits and he was a psychic. He had powers which no one else did but he used them for evil. He was very selfish and used his power for his own benefit.
Wow! I thought. It must have been great to have such wonderful powers. But he should have used them wisely. They say after his death his powers divided. They split into five parts-his brain, heart, sound, nails and the soul of reconstruction.
Each of these parts had a special power. His brain gives him memory. His heart keeps him alive. His voice transmits ultrasonic waves. His nails are like poison stings and his soul is for his reconstruction.
Thinking about such a monster gave me the creeps. I silently prayed that I would never have to meet Won. I felt insecure. The cold wind somehow warned me that my prayers would not be answered. I looked up with fear at the setting sun………
Chapter 3
Stranger
“What do you mean by reconstruction?” asked Seiya.
“Reconstruction means ability of the soul to create itself again and get back its original physical body.” answered Akumu, scientifically as ever.
“You mean the soul of Won is free to reconstruct itself?” asked Seiya.
“Yes it is but that soul needs the five parts Kaji mentioned.” replied Akumu. “However, once the spirit is free, it can possess people. We have to be careful.”
I was amazed at Kaji and Akumu’s knowledge of Won. How come they knew so much about such centuries old stories? Akumu did not believe in spirits, souls and other make-believes. Akumu once told me that his mother tells him a spooky story every night so that he grows to be bold. That’s why I watch spooky movies too but it doesn’t seem to be helping much.
It was time for dinner. Mrs. Morrie called us out for dinner. I was sitting beside Kaji.
“Kaji.” I asked. “Does Won still live there?”
“Won died two hundred years ago. How could he probably live there?” Kaji asked.
“Now, we will be eating.” Mrs. Morrie announced.
At night we lit a fire and roasted marshmallows. We also ate burgers which Mrs. Morie had made for us. Although she was a bad teacher, she turned out to be a very good cook.
“Tomorrow, you can explore the forest on your own.” Mrs. Morrie said. “Be sure to come back in the evening. Talk to me before you leave though.”
After dinner, I took out a video game that I had brought along. It was called the haunted house. I played it for a long time. Then, Sakura beckoned me to sleep.
While lying down Sakura asked me if I wanted to come with her to the volcanic cave. She was planning to go to the cave the following day. She wanted to see what had happened to the volcano. I agreed, although I was quite frightened to go there. On looking at it, the cave looked ordinary but one could never judge a book by its cover. I wonder what secrets lay hidden in the cave. While one part of me wanted to know about the mysteries another part of me was too scared to think.
I was beginning to get the feeling that all the events that occurred to day were a part of a bigger picture. A bigger and scarier picture…..
Chapter 4
The Secret
When the alarm clock rang the next morning I did not wake up because I thought it was not morning yet. It was still dark outside. The trees were blocking the light.
Sakura woke me up after sometime.
When I went out of the tent, Mrs. Morie was waiting for me. She handed all the students a walkie talkie and a small bag. She told us that we could explore the forest that day. We could go wherever we wanted. The walkie talkies were for contacting the ranger station in case we got lost and the bag had some food and a torch in it. She also told us that we should be back by seven in the evening. Mrs. Morrie was probably spending her time with the rangers.
“Let’s go to the cave.” Sakura said. “I’ve heard the minerals around there are good for your body.”
“I am a little scared.” I said.
“Do you believe in those stories Seiya told you?” Sakura asked. “He was not serious. Those are just myths. I’m here with you.”
“I hope everything goes well. We’re leaving tomorrow.” I said.
I decided to go with Sakura. What was the worst that could happen? Definitely no human could control volcanoes. There was nothing such as an evil spirit who lived in a forest. Why should a monster live in a forest when there are better places with more facilities to live in?
Soon, Sakura and I were on our way to the cave. The cave was far from our camp. After quite a while we reached the entrance of the cave. It was dark inside. There were no lights in the cave. A part of the cave had been blocked. We went inside. Sakura turned her torch on and so did I. We saw the inner part of the cave. Many people did not visit the cave as they thought it was haunted. The cave had not been visited for at least one hundred years.
I had expected the cave to be extremely dusty and criss-crossed with cobwebs. But I was wrong. It was very clean-even cleaner than my house. I was amazed.
As we headed further things seemed even stranger. Eager to know more, Sakura and I walked on. We reached a clearing in a minute. There was a wooden door and mat blocking the second part of the cave. There was a rusty name plate. The door was open so, Sakura and I decided to walk in.
There were two couches and a big table when we entered. Another room containing four dining chairs and a dining table was separated by a curtain. The floor was furnished with a red carpet. It was so clean. There was a computer in the corner too. I decided to check the computer out for answers. This place was totally different from what I had expected. Someone was definitely living here. The firewood was still hot. There were all kinds of questions in my mind. I tried to start the computer but it was not working.
“This is far from scary.” Sakura said. “I told you, didn’t I?”
“Maybe you were right.” I agreed. “All those horror movies have made you gullible.”
I tried the computer but it didn’t open. I got frustrated after a while. All devices were protected with a security code. The person living in this cave which now seemed like a mansion was definitely rich or influential. We started walking out. I decided to start walking back because I was hungry. Sakura came with me.
As we were walking out of the cave, we heard a loud scream. The sound was shrill and piercing. My organs jolted.
It was coming from the mansion. What’s more, the voice sounded like Kaji’s. Had Kaji got into trouble? He was my brother after all and I had to save him.
“Sakura….did you hear that?” I asked.
“Was that Kaji?” Sakura said wanting me to tell her she was mistaken. But I nodded.
“Let’s go.” Sakura said. “He needs us.”
“I have torches with me so we shouldn’t have any problem.” I said. “I hope Kaji and Akumu are all right. That mansion spooks me out.”
Sakura and I ran towards the mansion. It was still the same as yesterday. In fact, it was unusually quite. There was no scream or discord in the surroundings. This eerie silence seemed like a premonition. My heart was running on a treadmill. I couldn’t bear this suspense and horror. My heart would jump out of my body any moment.
I was panting because I ran all the way from the cave. Sakura was panting too.
We reached the mansion door
and opened it carefully. The door did not move as it was jammed. We tried hard to pull it, but it would not open. Now this was what I was expecting. There was definitely something wrong with this house.
“The door is not budging.” Sakura said. “You went here yesterday, didn’t you? Did you close it?”
“No.” I said.
Kaji screamed once again. The sound was synthetic but it was definitely Kaji’s voice. I walked over to the walls and tried to see what was happening through the windows. The curtains unfortunately blocked the view. I was sweating. There was some breeze which cooled my sweat making me feel chilly. I was frozen from inside. What was happening to Kaji? Where was everyone? I wondered how long by surface warmth would last. I was going to breakdown. The place just interfered with my aura. I would never come here again if I had the choice. This mansion was certainly different from the ones shown in horror movies.
“Mizu, help me kick the door open.” Sakura said. “If we use force together, we might be able to break it open.”
“I’m coming Sakura.” I said hurrying over to her. We took a position one meter away from the door.
“Ready Mizu? When I count three, let’s run and break the door.” Sakura said. I nodded.
“One…..Two……Three!!!!!!!”
Sakura and I ran with full force and managed to break the door open. It was quite fragile. It broke easily maybe because it was old. I opened the door and let Sakura enter first.
The mansion looked just like it looked yesterday-old and creaky. Sakura stepped inside then suddenly Oh No!! The floor collapsed and Sakura fell into an abyss. I tried to hold her hand but it was too late. The gap in the floor closed and my hand was jammed. I was forced to pull it out.
“Mizu….Mizu…..Mizu…..” her voice trailed away.
“Sakura! Sakura!” I called out but no one answered.
I was terrified. How…How….How could such a thing happen. It was unbelievable. How could the gap close just like that? Was I imagining things?
I pinched myself. It hurt….that meant this was not a dream! No way! Sakura had fallen into a hole that opened on entering the house and closed in an instant. What was this if not a dream? I had to brace myself and find a way to get Kaji, Akumu and Sakura back. I decided to start by looking for Sakura.
I tried to find Sakura but I did not see her anywhere. Then, I remembered Kaji’s scream. I rushed upstairs to find out what had happened to Kaji but there was no one. All the rooms in the floor were empty. I rushed down again to check the rooms in the ground floor. But, as with the upper floor all the rooms in the ground floor were empty too. Kaji and Sakura had just disappeared! …DISAPPEARED! Into thin air….
I rushed to the second floor and vigorously checked all the rooms. They were just like they had been left yesterday. There was just loneliness. I was standing along in this spooky mansion. I rushed downstairs to check the rooms. To my disappointment, they were empty too.
Tiny tears sprang up in my eyes. I had lost everything I had- My brother, my friends….They were gone! I wanted to cry till my stomach ached and my eyes were red but I knew this was not the time.
“You cannot give up!” I told myself. “Cry later. Your friends are waiting for you. Don’t let them down. They’re still here so, go find them. They’re still here…..somewhere…..”
But negative thoughts filled my mind. It was the last day of our camp and I had run out of water. Sakura and Kaji were nowhere to be found. While I was crying, three hours had gone by. It was evening. The fickle orange sun danced on the horizon. It could sink anytime. How could I ever find Sakura? As I sat thinking, the door to the mansion opened. In walked Kaji and Akumu. Seiya was there too.
“Kaji! Kaji! You’re here!!!!” I said. I ran to him and hugged him tightly.
“Mizu, you’ve never been so happy to see me ever in your life.” Kaji said sarcastically.
“I am so happy!” I said. “Do you know where Sakura is?”
“Sakura? I thought she was with you….” Kaji said.
“Never mind. Why did you scream?” I asked.
“Scream? What are you talking about Mizu?” Kaji asked.
“Weren’t you screaming from the mansion?” I asked.
“Are you kidding? I was in the cave all this time. I came here because I heard you scream.”
I told him what happened to Sakura and how she disappeared. He was amazed. Seiya was perplexed. Suddenly, Seiya exclaimed. Maybe he had come up with a plan.
“Come with me.” Seiya said.
We all went upstairs with Seiya.
He went to the room which we had visited the day before. He opened the third cupboard and then the second but it looked like he did not get what he wanted. He tried to open the fourth cupboard but it did not unlock. He asked all of us to help him. We tried to use all our strength but it was of no use. I could see that it was getting dark outside.
“Let us call the ranger station” said Kaji.
We all tried calling but the waves were not transmitted. The walkie talkie was not working. Maybe there was some disruption in the network.
Akumu got an idea. The candles were still burning. He took one candle from the east corner of the room and tried to melt the lock. It worked! The lock melted. At last we were able to see what was in the cupboard. Seiya quickly opened the cupboard and started searching.
“What are you searching for?” asked Akumu.
“The book of spells” replied Seiya.
“What book of spells?” asked Kaji?
Seiya told him that he belonged to the Daidouji family. The Daidouji family is supposed to be a magical family. All the members of this family hold magical powers. When Seiya was small he was taught that every haunted house has a book of spells. If one has to do things like opening a secret passage or closing a hole it could surely be done by some special spells.
Akumu saw a book lying under the cupboard. He picked it up. It was dusty so he couldn’t read it. Kaji cleaned it with his handkerchief. The title of the book said ‘The book of spells’ just as Seiya had guessed. Seiya started looking for a spell to open cracks in the house. He soon found one.
Every word was written in a strange language. I did not understand anything but Seiya did. He said we had to find a few things to be able to open the cracks. He said we needed a candle, some blood and a dead bat. We found all these things nearby. Now I understood why the things were lying on the shelf. Maybe someone used them. But the question was who?
“We have to perform a ritual.” Seiya said. “I’ll guide you.”
We had to stand in four corners of the room holding a candle each. After five minutes of silence, we had to burn the bat. Before starting the ritual we had to clean the bat with blood. There should be no sound except breathing in the five minutes of silence.
We stood on four corners of the room holding a candle each. After five minutes of torturous silence we burned the bat. I felt very bad for the bat. I loved animals. The bat was already dead so Seiya said I didn’t have to feel guilty.
When the bat turned black a crevice started to appear in the surface of the floor. It became larger and finally turned into a gap.
I could Sakura inside it. She saw me too. She was floating towards the top on a black plant. I reached out my hand for her. Soon, she reached the surface.
“Sakura! Sakura!” I said hugging her tightly, almost strangling her.
I lent her a hand and got her out. After she got out Seiya uttered some strange words. The crevice slowly closed again. Sakura was looking terribly relieved. She was very happy to see us. She said she was trapped in the crevice. She could hear strange noises but did not see anyone.
“I was so lonely and scared to death.” Sakura said. “I felt hungry and thirsty and thought I had met my end. I am so glad Mizu, you found me. It was so dark there…..I never want to be there again. I am so glad to be back.”
Everyone comforted Sakura. After a while, she felt better. We walked back to t
he camp where a worried Mrs. Morrie was waiting.
Not all was good however. Mrs. Morrie was calling out the results of the test. I was doomed.
Unfortunately, there was some bad news waiting for me. My paper had been graded and I was ready to get myself hanged. I knew I had done badly in the test. The fear of a bad grade seemed worse than the fear of Won.
“Kaji- O- Outstanding as usual.” She began. My heart was sinking.
“Mizu…” she said at last. “E…” Oh no! I had done badly again. My destiny was a far away boarding school. My life was ruined. But it had an advantage. Away from family meant away from Kaji.
I wanted to hide my paper and forget about it but with Kaji being close to me, my plans were in vain. He would reach home after the camp and immediately brag about his record of Os to mom. Then, it would be my turn to go through the misery of crying, getting lectured and being sent to a boarding school. I didn’t want to leave my friends. This place was special for me. But….I had failed….I wish there was some miracle that could turn the ‘F’ in my paper to an ‘A’.
Fortunately, that was our last day in the camp. But all these adventures and all these strange happenings. We had been connected to them. Something was definitely going on…something that gave me the creeps.
I had the feeling that this was not the last time I saw the mansion. It was summoning me with its eerie silence. What we had gone through was just one chapter in our book of doom…..
Chapter 5
The Rose Band
The next morning we were ready to go back. The camping trip had ended. The school bus was waiting for us outside the camp. I was glad to see it. I eagerly jumped into the bus and went to school. From school I walked home with Kaji and Akumu. Akumu was coming to our house again to study with Kaji. Akumu studied even on holidays.