The Ghost of Ontario

The Boy Under the Picnic Table | The Ghost of Ontario

Song: "Thunder Spirit" - Native American

        "Wake up, Ihaan." The voice was faint, but it pulled Ihaan out of an everlasting dream.

He opened his deep, brown eyes, and the first thing he saw was the ceiling. He was in a cave of some sort. The slick walls shimmered in a few rays of sunshine that managed to find their way into his resting place. How did he get there? Ihaan did not know. His mind was a complete blur. He felt as though he had just risen from the dead.

Ihaan rose to his shaky legs and stumbled over to a small pond in the corner of the room. He stared at his reflection in awe. There he was–a young teenager who was a stranger to the world. He had long, scraggly brown hair, tan skin, and a scar on his upper, right arm. Red paint decorated his bare arms and torso. He wore brown gauntlets on his forearms, gray pants made out of animal skin, and furry brown boots.

"Step outside, Ihaan." The voice again. What was it? It was strange. The voice almost sounded familiar.

Ihaan listened to it. He limped in the direction of a white light at the end of the cave. Halfway through his trek, he stopped and ran his long fingers down the length of his right leg. It pained him to walk, but why? There was so much going on, but Ihaan could not make sense of any of it. The bright light blinded him, but when his eyes adjusted, he realized what he was looking at–the Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park.

It was a beautiful area. The tall trees cast shadows over Ihaan's shoulders, and he could barely make out the form of a lake in a cluster of brown trunks. He stood on a small path that stretched out and landed on a shrine. It sat on a stone platform and had hieroglyphics carved on its dome-shaped structure. White flowers surrounded it.

Ihaan carefully made his way over to the shrine. The second he reached it, he heard a screech in the sky.

An eagle stooped down from the early morning atmosphere and soared around his head. Puffing out her white neck feathers, she settled down on top of the shrine and over a small cluster of hieroglyphics.

The mysterious voice spoke again: "Sweet child, I think you are finally ready. Somewhere in the Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park is your past. My trial has officially begun, but whether you are successful or not is up to you. Ro will take you to Red Squirrel Lake. That is where you must start."

At her name, the eagle opened her wings and gave them a few, quick flaps. She landed on Ihaan's left gauntlet, with an interested look on her face. The time had come. She had to make the Guardian of the Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park proud, as well as the Ghost of Ontario himself.

***

"So, tell me again why you volunteered to participate in this year's 24-Hour Ghost of Ontario Challenge?" Twenty-four-year-old Ranger Amelia pulled her leather bag off her back and dropped it to her feet. She and her partner, Ranger Kate, just made it to their campsite for the next twenty-four hours.

"Oh, Amelia. What are you so worried about?" Kate wanted to know.

"Don't you know the legends?" Amelia asked. "The Ghost of Ontario drowns anyone who disturbs his home! He's going to turn us into the blue-plate special, Kate! What body part do you think he likes more: the arms, legs, or head?"

"I think you need to stop dilly-daggling and help me with the tent."

"Fine. Fine. The Pupil must listen to the Master. From this point on, can I start calling you 'Sensei Kate'?"