Creatures Of Myth (JM Book 1) (A Jupiterville Book)

(Jewel) (Unedited)

The ground was wet. I picked my way through the woods slowly. Why did the secret portal have to be in the middle of the woods? I think the planning was a bit off for this. I mean who hides a secret portal in the middle of the woods anyway?

The noise level rose as I got closer. Sock had told me about this place. According to him, he could walk through a mirror to a party. According to the magic book me and Zane found, mirrors were ghost portals. The area around it was inherently creepy, due to ghost influence. This was another reason why people, who couldn't see Sock, found me creepy. People who could see Sock found Sock creepy.

The most fascinating thing about mirrors for me, was if you looked into a mirror with a spirit in it your soul might get sucked in. Of course you could leave, but only as a ghost. As an interdimensional being, getting stuck in a foreien dimension is not a problem for me. However if Sock had been stupid enough to get stuck there, I would kill him.

I was kinda hoping this was why he had been failing to return my calls. If he was ignoring me I would kill him. Though I think he should be able to feel the grave thing. My insecurity assured me he wasn't avoiding me. Though I couldn't figure out why he would. What did I do?

I saw an abandoned mansion in the distance. Of course. Cliches are to be expected in this buisness. Hauntings, extremely magic beings that out class me magicwise, and friends with issues. Not to mention that all magic beings look effortlessly beautiful with glamour on.

I opened the door. It creaked scarily, almost like a door alarm. I noticed how much blood was in the carpet, and grimaced. That would explain the echoed screams made from ghost presence. There must have been so gruesome mass death here.

I looked at all the mirrors in the room. Wall mirror there, wall mirror there, compact... Which one was the portal? Would they all work?

I ignored the ghostly eyes that followed me from paintings. Sock has never been one to inhabit stuff, but when he does it freaks me out. Like that time he made the couch dance. It was scary how well that couch could dance.

The lights flickered. I sighed. These ghosts had figured out how to work together to get everything in the house moving. Ghosts can tell who's living, but that's about the extent of their abilities. They can't tell that I'm magic, that I've been killed several times (most recently by that stupid wendigo), and I've been to the spirit world. This place was chaos. Books flew down a hallway and surrounded me in a tornado. The electric lights flickered. Somewhere a piano played.

"Shut up!" I yelled from sheer annoyance. Everything landed or shut up. The lights went dark and the curtains closed. The door slammed. I was left in darkness. Frantically, I fumbled for a candle.

"Ignite."

I could almost hear that ghostly annoyance. The candle lit up a good portion of the room. The candle blew out, due to ghostly influence. Collectively the ghost magic overpowered me control on the candle.

I ignited it again. Extinguished. Ignite. Extinguished. I couldn't even get it to light again.

So I fumbled my way through the dark. I tripped over what I think was an ottoman. I fell onto a couch. Thank you conveniently placed furniture.

Something lit up the room. It was a floor to ceiling mirror. I could see ghostly faces. They wailed for me to free them. Freeing ghosts from mirrors are a bad idea. You don't know what they did to get stuck there. By stuck there I mean between the ghost zone, and the mansion. I walked over. Blue hands freed themselves from the mirror and reached out towards me. They were probably from the ghost zone. Ghost zone ghosts could pass between at will. I assumed, even though Sock didn't die here,  that he could pass between the places at will.

I walked briskly towards, then through, the mirror.

000000000000000000000

Mist swirled out with me when I entered the ghost zone. No one even noticed. Ghosts danced with one another. Unable to touch each other without going through, their dances consisted of flying in circular motions that were probably patterned out.

I looked behind me, to assure myself in the existence of an exit. There was a mirror that mirrored the one I just came through. But this mirror was brighter, without giant loads of dust. In fact when I looked around everything looked brighter. It occured to me that there was no blood in the carpet.

This ghost zone existed from when the house was new. Wow. Someone forgot to cover the mirrors in this place. Covering the mirror after the mass death would have prevented a ghost zone from slowly forming. Not to mention a mirror where spirits have been banished. Why would you put that in your living room?

I made sure not to walk through anyone. I'm not sure if they realized that I was alive. I didn't need to get attacked by an angry ghost mob. These ghosts were from the olden days when mobbing weirdos was okay.

I saw him. He was sitting. He was looking at me. He looked sad. Damn it. He got himself stuck.

"However did you do this?" I asked him, half mocking him, half concerned.

"I don't want to go back. I miss them." He murmered. If ghosts could cry he'd be drowning.

Silence.

"I know Spencer's under your protection." He murmered almost happily.

"Your whole family actually." I replied curtly.

"I was talking." He chided.

"I'm not sorry." He was the one who ran off to another dimension. Though luckily he was not stuck. I was slightly sorry that I was born after Sock died though.

"We should leave." Things get crazy in ghost zones after zone midnight. Mass hysteria, followed by mass memory loss.

I glanced at my watch. 11:28. Though conventional time means nothing here. You have to go by bell dongs. I was glad I went to school and did my homework before coming here. Who knows how much time will pass before we get out?

"We should leave."

Sock sighed.

"I'm sorry." I murmered. He stood up and walked out through the mirror. Bell dong. I was running, time already slowing down.

Bell dong.

Bell dong.

Bell dong.

The mirror became nothing more than glass. And the ghosts were reliving there deaths. They stopped and paused, landing slowly on the floor. Then blood seeped from wounds, staining the carpet.

I was glad Sock wasn't here. Which death would be mine? I was almost glad I had died before. Otherwise the ghosts would rip me to shreds.

Claw marks tore themselves open. Then my leg broke. Then I felt my lungs get crushed.

I was getting the privilage of reliving all of them. Damn you universe.