Ghost Machine

October 18th, 1931 - Menlo Park, New Jersey



         "At last, time has come to try out our revolutionary invention!" Triumphed Thomas Edison.

         "Sir, are you... sure that it would work? I mean, people have tried to contact the dead since centuries!" Said William Joseph Hammer, stammering with each sentence.

         "My dear Will, am I sure? I am certainly not. That's why we've got to experiment with it." Thomas murmured, as he cast his eyes proudly over his new invention; the Ghost Machine. William stared at the machine, his eyebrows narrowed with uncertainty. What if it didn't work? What if something bad happened, he wondered.

         "Sir, I have a bad feeling about this..." He blurted.

         "Now now, I'm sure nothing will really happen if we don't succeed." Thomas gave a pause,and thought of something that could cheer William up. "Let's push the button together. We will both have a turn to talk to our deceased." He tried a smile. but William's expression never faltered.

         At last he muttered, "Okay, sir."

         "Now, on the count of three," William became more agitated, his hands trembling as he and Thomas reached out for the bright red switch located on top of the machine. "Three... Two... One..."

         "Now!" Thomas shouted, and both of their hands flicked the swich. There was a shudder in the machine, followed by William colapsing to the floor. A strange tune started to come out of the machine. Thomas was too excited to notice his assistant, and certainly did not notice the grey smoke surrounding his legs like a slithering snake. The snake of smoke circled around Thomas, but as he noticed it around his waist, it was too late.

         "Humans shall not cross death." a dark voice murmured.

- - - - - - - - -

October 12th, 2008 - Menlo Park, New Jersey

         "Thomas Edison was the inventor of the lightbulb, electric light, media, and many other things. He was one of the major inventors that is embraced by scientific nations." Our science teacher, Ms. Katz read out from the textbook. Her eyes were buried in the bush of dark hair, and the only thing I could see was her giant glasses, glinting in the light. She looked like a typical geeky science teacher, babbling about facts that we don't even care. Though it was boring, school was over after this class, so I waited.

         "Hey Rhys, did you know that he also invented this machine that can summon ghosts?" The guy sitting next to me whispered to me in enthusiasm. It was Dan Lisbyn, my best friend, as well as an addict to paranormal things.

         "Who?" I raised my head and answered lazily. Talking to him was much better than listening to Ms. Katz, but sometimes I thought that he talked too much.

         "Thomas Edison, you idiot. It is also said that the machine was lost years ago." Dan frowned in dismay.

         "Cool. But if it's lost, how do you know it exists? I mean, it must be a rumour. I doubt that any scientist can make such thing." I waved him off, hoping that he would shut up for a minute so that I could have a nap.

         "No, no. That's why I'm telling you, I wanna look for it. Did you know that we are so near to the lab he used? I thought that maybe we could sneak into it...And..." As he raised his voice in excite, Ms. Katz looked up from the textbook. She stared at Dan, and said in a sweet, dark voice,

         "Mr. Lisbyn. If you want to talk in front of us, go ahead." She pointed her side. Then she looked at me, "Mr. Hudson, why do you look like you just had a nap?"

         "I'm sorry, miss. I haven't had much sleep last night." Some guys in the class snickered, and Ms. Katz considered my say. "Very well, but I do not want to see you like this again. Now, Mr. Lisbyn, won't you come to the front?"

         "N, no, it's fine Ms. Katz... I will not interrupt again." Dan stammered. He looked at me and gave me a think about it, okay? face and turned to Ms. Katz's lecture again.

         All while the teacher chanted the text, I thought about what Dan said. He said that we could sneak into the laboratory. Maybe I could snag some old equipments and sell them, I thought. But the risk of getting caught hung on the top of my thoughts. Since it was a lab of such a revolutionary person, maybe the security is high. Or maybe te security is low because it was old.



         When we finished class, I draghed my heavy bag and scanned the area for Dan. He was quite tall, so it was always easy to spot him. I saw him near the end of teh corridor, looking at something in his locker. I groaned as I picked up my bag, and strode towards him.          When I tapped on his shoulder, he jumped and turned back to me, his arms ready to strike. Then his expression turned to relief as soon as he recognized me.

         "What, you thought I was a ghost or something?" I folded my arms in amusement.

         "It's possible." He chuckled.

         "Anyway, about the lab sneaking thing," I started as his face brightened up. "I thought that maybe we could stroll around the lab first before actually sneaking in it."

         Dan nodded, "So you agree to come?"

         "Yeah. Why not?" I shrugged.

         "You rock, Rhys! Anyway, I thought that maybe we could go tomorrow. So we could study the place, look for emergency exits and stuff, and if we can, we'll sneak in on sunday. Is that OK?" Dan grinned.

         "Yeah, then see you tomorrow at 10 a'clock." For some reason, 10AM was our signature time to meet. We always met at 10 a'clock, which I don't know why, but became our routine.

         Dan waved, and we went separate ways.



October 13th, 2008 - Menlo Park, New Jersey

         "Hey Dan," I greeted Dan, who was waiting in a green parka and a matching backpack. I brought my favorite blue North Face backpack with a notepad, a pen, a torch, and a water bottle.

         "You ready?"

         "Yeah. let's go. I mean, we're not sneaking in until tomorrow right?"

         Dan smirked "Well... Since you were a little late, I already checked out the place. Good news is, I didn't see any guards or presence detactors and stuff like that. Well?"

         I raised an eyebrow. I never thought I was late. Then I glanced at my watch, and found out that it was already 10:45. How did I get late? I wondered, but the answer didn't come. Aside from that, excite rushed over, as I imagined great fortune in my mind. But part for it wondered if it was the right thing to do, making money by stealing. I pushed away the doubt, and answered "OK, let's go then." Dan grinned, and we strode towards the so-called Edison's lab. Just as Dan said, it was deserted, and there was no sign of guards whatsoever. I looked around the roofs to find a camera, but there was none. The place didn't look like the lab that I imagined as a lab of a revolutionary scientist. It just looked like a cozy brick cottage. The cottage was long, leading to the forest, and there were several chimneys in the roof. There was a big terrace in the front that led to the entrance.

         I and Dan slowly walked towards the white door. and Dan pulled the knob. The door made a squeak, and we were in. "Don't they at least lock it?" I asked. Why wouldn't a great scientist's lab be locked? I mean, if there aren't any guards or anything, they should at least lock the main entrance.

         "I don't know, but it's good for us." I felt Dan grin from the front.

         As soon as we entered inside, I immediately smelled strong chemicals. it was acidic, and nerve-wrecking. My fingers instinctively reached my nose, and I breathed from my mouth. But even with my mouth, the air had a sour taste. I looked forward and saw Dan covering his nose too. "This place stinks," Dan muttered.The place was now recognizeable as a laboratory. The wooden shelves were full of chemicals in flasks and beakers, equipments that I couldn't name, and a bunch of thick leather books. The pale wooden tables were aligned on walls, and spider webs hung on the edges. I wondered if acid iddn't affect wood, since everything was made out of wood.

         We advanced slowly, each step causing the floor to creak. But once we confirmed that there weren't any dangers or traps, we hurried to the bookshelves. I opened a thick red book, and winced as dust flew towards me. I blew it away, and opened the book. It was just some thoeries about light and shadows. I immediately closed it, and strode towards the equipments. I searched for things that looked expensive, but many things looked just like tools used in science class. I huffed in disappointment, and went back to the bookshelf again, surrendering to help Dan's search for the "Ghost machine"

         Then one book caught my eye.

         It was called "Life, Death, and Necromancy". It had a solid black cover, the text printed in gold. When I started opening it, I noticed a page bookmarked. I opened that page, and I gasped in triumph. I still didn't know if the machine existed, but the page showed how Edison tried to make it. Yes, the page was about ressurection, raising a person from the dead. Without looking up, I called out "Dan, you better check this out."

         I heard heavy footsteps from behind, walking towards me. Then I thought, heavy? Dan never struck me as a bulky person. I sensed that something was wrong. Maybe there was a hidden guard.

         I looked behind.

         But there was no one.

         No one, not even Dan. It was as if he evaporated, and as if I was imagining the footsteps. The room was empty, still reeking the acidic smell. But the room seemed darker, the temperature decreasing. A strange tune sang from somewhere.

         The last thing I knew, I heard a dark booming voice saying "Humans shall not cross death.", and the world went blank.



Later On

         My eyes blinked open. My vision was blurry at first, but it came to focus. I was lying down, and I saw the white ceiling and the blue curtains looming over me. The scent of medicine and chemicals (not the lab kind,) hung. I sat up, and recognized the place as a hospital, the one next to my house. I immediately realized what happened; going to Edison's lab, Dan disappearing, and a faint memory of a dark voice.

         Did Dan really disappear? How did anyone find me in the lab? Did I colapse? Many questions formed in my head.

         "Ah, you're finally awake," a high, lady-like voice said. I looked to the direction, and saw a middle-aged woman in a suit, sitting on a stool. All that came out of my mouth was, "Er, hello."

         The woman smiled, and greeted back. "Hello, Rhys."

         "Um... Who are you, miss? How did you find me? And why do you know my name?" I asked.

         "As for who I am, I am Fontana Jane, the guard of Edison's lab. How did I find you? I found you sprawled on the floor of the laboratory. I know your name because the hospital told me."

         "Oh." An intelligent reply came out of my mouth. So there was a guard. My face reddened, and guilt rushed over me. "I'm sorry for ravaging the lab."

         Fontana chuckled, a soft, gentle laugh like snow. "No worries, my dear. But I ask you, what were you doing inside alone?"

Alone? "I wasn't alone, Ms. Jane. I had a friend with me, but he vanished. Well, we were searching for a machine that was rumoured to exist." I took a deep breath, "Have you ever heard of the Ghost Machine?"

         At once, Fontana's face paled. After a pause, "How did you get information about that machine, my dear?"

         "From my friend."

         "And who is this friend?"

         "Dan Lisbyn. He's an occult maniac."

         "Listen, Rhys," She leaned forward, " That rumour is not a rumour."

         "Huh?"

         "It's true. Edison did make something like that." She sighed. "But he actually died from trying to use it. His assistant William Joseph Hammer was unconcious for a month. It seems that anyone who tries to go near the machine either dies or colapses. I'm relieved that you only was unconcious for an hour or so. That machine is cursed, my dear." She looked down, and started to fiddle with her long manicured fingernails. "I've seen about dozen or so people who wanted to find the machine, but they all became unconcious. They also claimed to hear a strange voice. Was there anything like that?"

         I remembered teh booming voice. "Yeah, right before I colapsed, I heard the voice saying "Humans shall not cross death" or something like that. It was as if that person was not human."

         "It is said that it is a guard of the realm of the dead. He might've took your friend with him."

         I was startled "You mean, like that ghost kidnapped Dan?"

         "Yes."

         "Then I've gotta get him back!" I raised my voice. The dead captured my best friend? Even though Dan was annoying sometimes, I would risk my life to bring him back.

         "I'm afraid that's not possible." She looked down again. "As the ghost said, humans are supposedly forbidden to cross the line to the realm of the dead."

         "But that ghost-person was able to come here!"

         "I don't know, dear. It might get you killed."

         "So there is a way?"

         "Yes, but it is too dangerous. You shouldn't try it."

         "No, I'll do anything to get Dan back."

         As she examined my features, trying to comprehend if I was serious or not, she sighed and said, "Very well. In order for a human to cross to the realm of the dead, we first have to get the ritual right, and disguise yourself as a dead person."

         "Dress as a zombie?"

         "No, it is a ritual done with magic, strong magic that conceals your life." Fontana said in a matter-of-fact way.

         "Wait, what? Magic? Are they true too?"

         "Yes, as necromancy is true, magic is also true."

         "Oka-ay..."

         "After the ritual, which is terribly hard, a door will open to the realm. After you go inside, you've got to be careful, as the ritual won't hold too long. The guards are not easily deceived, as they are trained well. If you are not found, you must go to the throne, and bargain with the king. I don't know his name, but I know it is forbidden to speak of it. Remember, you have to make a big sacrifice."

         "What kind of?"

         "A life." She sighed, and added "Not yours, the life has to be a magical creature's."

         I cocked my head. Usually, I wouldn't believe her. ro call her a liar, but after all the things I now know, I accepted it. "A magical creature? like a goblin or a unicorn? Where the heck do they live?"

         "Don't worry, I own one. You can sacrifice it."

         I raised my eyebrows. "You will allow me to?"

         "I have too many of them." Fontana grinned.

         "Um... OK, thanks, I guess." Then one question evaded me. "Wait, Ms. Jane? How do you know all this?"

         "Because I'm a witch, my dear." She said it as if it was a normal thing.

         But what was normal now?