《Phenomena the Basic Witch and The Mind Safari》Chapter Fifteen: Catching a Phantom
Advertisement
As every clock in the dream castle struck the midnight hour, the sun orb illuminating the cloud wall switched off and Mena and Janus began their nightly prowl. They tiptoed sideways down the wall, stealthily; though Men wished Janus hadn’t worn that rustling skirt. As they reached the bottom of the wall, they approached the edge of the tunnel leading to the Cloud Hall. Mena peered inside it—there were no guards or anyone else wandering about. “The coast is clear,” she whispered to Janus and the pixie reaper gave her a bone’s up. The two strolled down the hallway, and only the moonlight in the cloud hall guided them through it.
“Wonder where the Lollypop security taskforce are tonight?” Mena asked Janus. “You’d think they’d step things up after the Nightmare Calamity.”
A strange whirling sound filled the air. “W-what is that?” Mena asked.
“Quick,” Janus said, “get off to the side.”
A pale light entered the tunnel, emitting itself from a small orb. Mena pushed her thin, bony frame alongside the icy brick wall
The light drew closer and closer until it revealed itself to be a spherical metal eyeball with a white light beam shining through the pupil.
Mena held her breath, feeling this magical device might be able to sense it. Unfortunately, her lung capacity was slightly bigger than two peanuts. She gasped, red faced. The light immediately turned in her direction. She ducked as the eye light hovered right above her head. The beam was about to descend on her, but a rustle drew the eye away.
Oh nosy, Mena thought, Janus’ skirt.
The light swung in the direction of Janus’ body, but the pixie reaper had removed her shirt and the light went through her skeletal rib cage. The eye hovered for a few seconds before resuming its patrol and flying over to the start of the tunnel.
Once it was gone, Mena approached Janus, who looked oddly perturbed.
“Janus are you ok?” she asked
Janus, whose full skeletal torso was on display covered herself. “I feel so exposed,” she exclaimed, but she smiled. “At least now I know the meaning of ‘strip down to your bones’”.
Advertisement
Mena patted Janus softly on the back. “But at least that fooled the eye-robot,” the young witch said. “What do you think that was?”
“That must be their new Lollypop security system,” Janus responded. “It’s a lot more efficient since it doesn’t need to take donut breaks.”
“True that,” Mena said, “Guess we gotta be extra careful.”
Much to Mena and Janus’ good fortune, they encountered no more eye-robots on their way to the auditorium. Mena had never been to the auditorium at night and when she opened the metal doors, she was in for a surprise. The painted backdrop that depicted a sunset over a cliffside ocean was now replaced with a glowing silver moon. “Wowie zowie,” Mena exclaimed. “This castle really is magic.”
“How many years have you been at this school?” Janus smirked as they made their way past the endless rows of seats. They climbed the stairs leading up to the backdrop.
Standing at the edge of the stage, they looked around. Everything was dark with the sole exception of the artificial moonlight.
“So, what do we look for?” Mena asked Janus, eyeing her friend suspiciously.
“Phantoms normally aren’t visible to the naked eye,” Janus replied, she smiled and pulled out a piece of pale piece of chalk. “We have to DRAW them out.”
“Wait,” Mena gasped. “What are you doing?” Janus began tracing a glowing pentagram on the concrete stage; it resembled the kind pentagram earrings she’d often wear.
“Oh no…” Mena moaned, backing away from the pentagram. “I hope we don’t get trouble for this.”
“Relax,” Janus said, smiling wistfully at her handiwork. “We’ll simply erase it before anyone shows up.”
“What kind of ritual are you going to do?” Mena asked, covering her hands with her face.
“One my mother taught me,” Janus said softly. “She was a bokur from the Mind Jungles. She knew how to summon the unruly spirits of the dead.”
Janus clapped her bony hands together, causing them to rattle like a bunch of hollow drums. Her eyes turned jet black and she chanted the following words:
Advertisement
“Life is death, death is life
Draw the wrathful spirits into sight
Death is life and life is death
Awake the black spirits from their rest”
The pentagram shined ominously in the darkness, and a harsh wind spun around the room, shuffling the curtains on either side. Mena held onto her nightgown to prevent it from flipping upwards and exposing herself.
Janus’ eyes returned to normal as the winds settled. Mena and Janus looked around the room. Everything was silent and still. A few minutes elapsed before Janus stomped her feet, causing her skirt to bristle.
“Phony bones,” Janus swore. “If the phantom was in here, it definitely would have awoken by now.”
“Perhaps we need some bait,” Mena asked.
“Hmm,” Janus said, rubbing her pointed chin. “We could have some bait.”
“What do phantom’s eat?” Mena asked, curiosity in her eyes.
“Souls,” Janus exclaimed. “I don’t have one but fortunately you do.”
Mena shook her head. “I don’t know about that, Janus. People tell me when I dance and sing, I don’t have any soul.”
A soft moan interrupted their banter and reverberated through the theater. “OoOoOoOohhhhh…”
“What was that?” Mena asked, shivering. She wanted to run and hide behind the curtains but a chill in the air kept her frozen in place.
Janus excitedly looked around the theater. “Either May has a terrible case of the runs and she’s looking for some antacid or…”—the pixie reaper gave a wink—“We’ve found our phantom.”
Janus’ icy hand reached out and pulled Mena out of her stasis and they ran off the stage, taking refuge behind the curtain. The phantom of the auditorium moaned softly again. “oOoOoOoOohhhhh…”
And then, the phantom materialized. It had short, black hair, a moon pale face and glowing green eyes. It let out another moan and Mena realized: It was Caligari.
”Oh…” the phantasmic woman bemoaned. “Why did that Willow have to make that rash decision after I had gotten sooooooo close to Gemini—the phantom removed a strand of curly brown hair from her pocket—“All I have to remember him by is this lock of his hair.”
Caligari pushed it up against her nose and sniffed it.
Mena winced. At least being trapped in the Nightmare Void meant Gemini didn’t need to get a restraining order.
Caligari cursed and growled. “At least Willow’s getting what’s coming to her.”
The hair on Mena’s neck stood on end when she heard that. What did her professor mean by that? Almost like…no…Mena didn’t have time to meditate on it because Caligari was floating towards the stage.
“We got nowhere to go,” Mena whispered to Janus as they hid behind the stage curtain.
Janus winked and held out the fabric. “You could say it’s curtains for us.”
Mena was dead silent, and she glared at Janus. “You’re as dead as your sense of humor.”
But before Janus could respond, they head a scream. Both of them looked to the stage and they gasped.
Caligari had become encircled by a white forcefield from the pentagram. She struggled and moaned, giving off loud hisses and protests.
“Well well well,” Janus whispered. “Looks like we did catch a phantom.”
“Now’s our chance,” Mena said, and they made a break for it
Caligari carried on as the two scrambled off the stage. Mena hoped that their professor was in such a state of mania that she wouldn’t recognize them
Running up the aisles, they burst out the auditorium, panting. Well, Mena was panting, Janus had no lungs. “That was a close one,” the pixie reaper said, but Mena didn’t answer. She wore a troubled expression on her face.
After hearing what Caligari had said about what was coming to her, she had to add her phantom professor to the list of suspects trying to murder her. Tonight, she had gone to the auditorium seeking answers, but the plot had only thickened before her eyes.
Advertisement
The Dream Saga
We all get dreams, don't we? But what if those dreams turn into our reality?
8 508Radioactive Evolution
How far would you go to change humanity's fate? Jared Cartwright has spent the last two years delving into the twisted, scarred wastelands of an earth ravaged by nuclear war. The rich and powerful have taken to the oceans and skies on floating utopias, escaping destruction and leaving the rest of humanity to fend off the mutated creatures that roam the earth.To face his new reality, Jared must become an apex predator if he hopes to survive. He must unlock his true potential to confront those that left mankind to die. With deadly adversaries above and below, Jared must evolve beyond mere human limitations to defeat the powerful rulers of the cities and the rabid beasts lurking in the shadows.Jared's quest takes a new turn when he discovers dragons are real.
8 117Embrace the Ether
To burn away the old, rebuilding it anew. Countless years ago, a terrible war came for the ancient Primordials, casting down their once believed immovable dominance and securing the rise of a new empire. The Ether was fractured, broken into numerous pieces as peace was hard-fought. Thrown into this new hectic land, Deus must come to wield an unexplained power, one that threatens both his sanity and life simply to use. If he wishes to survive, he must learn not only how to harness this strength but how to grow and expand it, altering the path of those around him. What he doesn't know is that he's found himself involved in a terrifying plot hosted by those demons of old, a game of sorts to decide the fate of Midnight. Does Deus have what it takes to survive, or has he found himself trapped in a plot he has no hope of escaping? Note: This story has a slow-build and takes awhile for the pace to get going. If that isn't your thing, this may not be for you. Heavy emphasis on world-building and character creation and progression. --------------------------------------------------------------- • Release Schedule • Chapters will be released weekly, with some occasional alterations throughout. This may not be a permanent adjustment, but I'll do everything I can to remain active. --------------------------------------------------------------- • Important FAQ • Q: What is the cover art from?A: The current cover art for ETE is called 'Run Boy, Run...' which is a work from Gustavo Arteaga's collection, which can be found here - https://gusart.artstation.com/https://www.instagram.com/sirgusart/ If you're the original artist of the work and would like me to remove your content from my cover art, please send me a private message telling me so. I'm not making any direct profit off this story or the cover, as everything here is a passion project. Also; This story and all its chapters are a work-in-progress, and may be altered at a later date. Don't expect perfection, but I am trying my best. Look at everything posted on this fiction as a first draft.
8 152Summoning went Wrong
Who doesn't like fantasy? Worlds full of interesting and new things that baffle the mind of anyone. Races like elves, dwarfs, and beast peoples, roaming the land, in search of different things that might be banal from them but incredible for others. And if you are someone who comes from an otherworld you will certainly receive a great power, rare equipment, trustworthy companions, or even a harem, while you are tasked to fight the Demon Lord and his army made of monsters, for peace and glory. But have you ever asked this question: What is it like to be on the other side? Follow the story of Steven Torres, who was abducted from his world with his classmates only to be thrown away into a chaotic world as the most hated race. While the hero's job is to fight for justice, he's at least a lot simpler. To survive another day.
8 384Between Two Worlds (Aizawa x Reader)
A recent accident leaves you unexpectedly thrown from one world into another. Soon, all the of the heroes you've grown to love and adore, and all the villains you've loathed and fear, have all become a reality. But what even is reality anymore? You? Your love for a certain hero? This world? Only time will tell...if you don't run out of it, that is.MatureAngstFluffLemonSpoilers for both manga and anime!🏅 #1 in izekai (11.17.20)🏅 #1 in aizawa (11.29.20)🏅 #1 in wrongworld (04.28.20)🏅 #1 in allmight (09.29.20)🏅 #1 in aizawashota (06.27.20)🏅 #1 in aizawashouta (09.26.20)🏅 #1 in aizawaxreader (07.06.20)🏅 #1 in fanfiction (07.20.20)🏅 #1 in aizawashouta (07.23.20)🏅 #2 in shotaaizawa (07.06.20)🏅 #5 in heroacademia (12.27.20)🏅 #7 in shota (12.26.20)🏅#11 in bnha (12.27.20)
8 163The Brains of the Operation
iZombie fanfiction~Liv eats the brains of a dead private investigator that she used to go to school with. As she, Clive and Ravi try to find the killer, Liv is swept with a wave of bad puns, a strong urge to binge NCIS, and lots - LOTS - of sunglasses and suits.Let's go, zombies.[Updated Wednesdays]
8 85