The Unknown

Chapter V

AVALON

Music: Let's Get Fever With the Gunkan March from Parodius Da! PC-Engine

I stare at the girl, who is standing in the middle of the room in a confused and dazed state. The ghost that was terrorizing the girl has vaporized from my gunshot. In other words, the ghost is dead... again.

"You alright there?" I ask, walking over to the girl slowly.

"Oh... U-um, yeah... Yeah, I think so." she nods shakily.

"Are you sure? You're looking a bit pale." The girl seems out of it, and she clutches her chest as if she'd been shot. "Did that ghost manage to shoot you?"

"W-what? N-no... No, I'm fine. Trust me. Just a little... Shaken up." She laughs, sounding nervous, while zipping up her jacket. She makes a point of doing so quickly.

I eye her suspiciously, but nod. I'd rather not push further if I don't have to. "So, what are you doing back here?"

"Oh... I came here with my friends, but I sort of abandoned them... I wanted to explore." she shrugs.

"Well, we should probably go find them. Probably not a smart idea to be here alone, especially after what just happened," I suggest, and she nods. With that, I lead her out of the hidden room and through the hallways.

"You know, I never did introduce myself. I'm Avalon." I smile.

"Mia." The girl smiles back. After that, I notice a small group of people checking inside one of the master bedrooms. Mia gives me names to put with faces, and then we join them. Shanna turns to us and exclaims, "Oh, hey there, Mia. How was your ghost hunt?"

Not wanting to worry the others too much, I answer for her. "I found her trapped in a hidden room that she wandered into, and I helped her get out." I make a "go along with what I'm saying" facial expression towards Mia, and she nods along with me. Something must seem off about her to the others, because Avery looks at her in a genuinely concerned way.

"Mia, are you okay?" she questions.

"And who's your little friend there?" Sam asks.

"One, I'm fine. Nothing is wrong. Second, this is Avalon." Mia explains. Sam and Avery exchange a confused glance, then both of them shake their heads and sigh.

"What's that fancy gadget ya got there?" Heath asks, gazing at what is in my hand. Mia notices the gun too, and her face immediately lights up.

"Woah! It's an exact replica of the 1835 Colt!" she says excitedly. "It's the thing I told you about earlier that can kill anything supernatural!" I raise an amused eyebrow at her for her knowledge of my weapon. Itś not every day I come across someone like that.

"Well, in that case, you're welcome to come along with us if you want, Avalon. That could come in handy for us," Sam offers.

I nod. "Sounds good to me."

Then Avery, a fake smile on her face, says, "Okay, cool. Now, we should probably continue the search." She doesn't seem very excited for it; rather, she seems irritated. Understandable.

"Well, I guess if we need to ward off ghosts, we have enough salt here to last us a lifetime." Mia mutters as we begin walking. Avery just eyes Mia for a moment, then goes back to looking forward without saying a word.

ELLE

Music: Ghostly Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy

You know how sometimes, in movies, when a group of guards or police officers need to break through a locked door, they use some kind of battering ram?