PHANTOM FORCE, Goin' Ghost Retold

Vol. 1, Issue #2

Rooftop, Casper High, Amity Park

The spirit of music sat on the roof of Casper High, trying to wrap her head around what she watched.

Ember was unnerved, to say the least.

Phantom may have been a sarcastic quippy brat, but underneath the heroic bravado that was the infamous halfa of Amity Park was a tormented boy with decent intentions who was a victim of a horrible accident. Sure, his sister came at the end to help him, but the dead punk rocker couldn't help but compare the lab accident to her...

...Her death.

Unbeknownst to her fans, Ember's song, You Will Remember, was both a reflection of her obsession and a reminder of her death in 1974. In all honesty, she could relate to Danny. Like him, Emily Pyre, was a dorky loser at school who wanted to try and find a path of her own. Her parents were workaholics and had been bullied for being unremarkable compared to her older brother. But like Danny, she had a dream of being a famous musician.

She constantly tried to hone her skills as an aspiring songstress to make it big like her idols such as David Bowie and Gene Simmons of KISS fame. One of the faculty suggested that Emily join a talent show as a means to show her fellow classmates what she was capable of. She ended up beating all of the contestants with her cover of American Woman by The Guess Who. And from this surge of popularity, she was asked out by her crush, who was the hottest guy in the school.

...But like popularity after high school, Emily's fifteen minutes of fame did not last.

Her date stood her up on the night she was promised a date. This hurt Emily, so she confronted the popular boy, only to find the boy she liked in the arms of the talent show runner-up who was the Queen Bee of the school. When Emily faced the boy, he didn't even remember her name. As it turned out, he blew her off for the popular girl.

Emily skipped the rest of school to wallow in her home. Her parents hardly spent any time at home. But the notable difference between Emily and Danny was her lack of a support system. Without this, Emily was much more vulnerable emotionally and physically.

While the news reported Emily's death to be an accident, that was far from the truth. As it turned out, the Queen Bee of the school purposely seduced Emily's crush to spite her. On the night when Emily ran back home in tears, the popular girl and her group of friends drove to the Pyre Residence while Emily's family was working late. Out of jealousy and hatred for losing to the geeky girl in the show, the Queen Bee and her cronies firebombed her house before quickly fleeing the scene.

By the time Emily got up, she was already burning to death. Like a small wick, her life dwindled, and she became a spirit who re-emerged in the Spirit World with no knowledge how how her death came to be. At first, she didn't realize what had happened to her, but after seeing the condition of her home, the memorial service (with the lack of people outside of her family), and her high school moved on, her obsession solidified and pledged to make people remember her the only way she knew how.

...Thus, Ember McLain was born.

Since her death, Ember was never used to people showing genuine interest in her as a person or her music without being affected by her hypnotic powers. So, when Skulker approached her, her being was filled with hope, something that she hadn't felt in decades.

It felt like she had a chance at a proper comparison. Maybe even something more. That was, until she was stood up again, and then lied to.

In contrast, each time Ember has fought the Ghost Boy, he's been open and honest with his intention, about himself, and most importantly, to her. That's why she could always look forward to their occasional rumbles despite the brat shoving her in the thermos and sending her back to the Spirit World.