When Lydia woke up, it was pitch black outside the car window. She was alone in the passenger seat of a yellow Chevrolet Camaro, a jacket draped over her.
"Did I fall asleep?" she muttered, sitting up and peering out at her surroundings.
The familiar streets told her she was back in her hometown, Acton.
"Ma'am, you're awake?" a voice suddenly chimed from the car's radio, startling her.
"Who—who's talking?!" Lydia yelped, panicking. She thought she'd stumbled into some paranormal event, but her senses didn't pick up any supernatural vibes.
"Ma'am, I'm Bumblebee. You're sitting inside me."
Lydia stared at the radio in shock. "You… you're this Chevrolet Camaro?"
"Yup, that's me."
Lydia was floored. She started analyzing Bumblebee with her medium expertise.
"Are you a ghost possessing this car? I've seen cases like this before!"
"Uh, no. I'm a silicon-based lifeform. Think of me as an intelligent robot."
Thanks to America's sci-fi-heavy pop culture, even regular folks could grasp the concept of a smart robot.
"An intelligent robot? No wonder I couldn't sense a soul!" Lydia marveled, running her hands all over the car's interior.
"Hey, can you feel it when I touch you like this?"
Bumblebee paused, probably never having been asked something so bizarre. Lydia's brain worked in mysterious ways.
"Uh, my sensors are mostly on the exterior. I don't really feel much inside."
Lydia, brimming with curiosity, bombarded Bumblebee with questions—many of which made the silicon lifeform feel a twinge of embarrassment, a first in its mechanical life. It was starting to regret striking up a conversation.
The interrogation only stopped when Roy opened the car door and slid in.
"Oh, you're awake?" he said.
Lydia's eyes sparkled as she looked at him. "Roy, I can't believe you've got a sentient car! This is amazing!"
"Forget that. Acton doesn't even have a 24-hour convenience store. I had to run around forever to find you some food. Here, eat up."
Truth be told, Roy had the food stashed in his inventory all along. Acton was such a small town that everything closed after dark—not even a bar was open.
Roy had stepped out to deal with his own hunger; the lunch Hannibal made was long gone.
Lydia took the sandwich Roy handed her, surprised. "Isn't this the Dolphin Hotel's signature sandwich? Where'd you get it?"
"Uh, don't worry about it. Just eat."
Roy dodged the question, and Lydia didn't press. She was starving after not eating all day and devoured the sandwich in a few bites.
"Full yet? I've got more," Roy offered.
"Thanks! A drink would be nice, though."
Roy handed her a bottle of milk. After scarfing down a second sandwich, Lydia finally felt satisfied.
"Phew! I haven't eaten this much in ages. Mr. Black, what time is it?"
Lydia patted her now-full stomach, letting out a content sigh.
Roy glanced at his watch. "Almost midnight. We got to Acton around ten, so I didn't wake you."
"Guess I'm not making it to school today. Mr. Black, want to crash at my place for the night?"
Roy hesitated. He'd planned to head back to L.A., but Lydia's attitude toward him seemed to have warmed up. Turning her down might not be the best move.
"Is that okay?"
"Of course! I come back to my old house now and then, so it's pretty clean."
"Alright, one night then."
Lydia gave Roy directions, and he drove to a house on the outskirts of Acton.
"This is it! Mr. Black, I'll tidy up the guest room. Give me a sec!"
While Roy lounged in the living room, a loud thud came from upstairs.
Most American homes are wood-framed since property taxes are based on construction costs, and wood is way cheaper than concrete.
The wild part? This policy supposedly started because a paint company lobbied the state legislature to promote wood houses—more wood means more paint to sell, right?
But wood houses burn fast in fires, which is bad news for regular folks. Plus, the insulation's terrible, so Roy easily heard the noise from upstairs.
"Ms. Foster, what happened?" Roy called, rushing up.
He found Lydia sprawled at the guest room door. No sign of the Dark Mage, and the floor looked clean.
"I—I just saw a vision of my daughter dying!" Lydia said, her face pale with panic.
"A vision of death? Like a hallucination?"
"No! It's not a hallucination—it's a premonition! I had one when my husband died, too. Something's wrong with Astrid!"
As a skilled medium, Lydia didn't have clairvoyant powers like Mortel Short, but she could sense when family was in danger.
Roy frowned. "Isn't your daughter at school? What kind of danger could she be in there?"
Lydia struggled to her feet with Roy's help. "I saw Astrid, but she wasn't at school. She was in a rundown old house—looked like the House of Hal!"
"What's the House of Hal?"
"It's Acton's famous haunted house! I investigated it once and found evidence of an evil ritual there. Mr. Black, please, save my daughter! I'll do anything if you help her!"
Lydia was pinning all her hopes on Roy. She was no fighter—barely able to handle a regular person, let alone a threat.
Her only other option was summoning the Dark Mage and agreeing to marry him. No way.
Roy didn't hesitate. To catch the Dark Mage, he needed Lydia's cooperation. Saving her daughter would ensure she'd help with his plan.
"What are we waiting for? Take me to the House of Hal!"
---
Meanwhile, over at Astrid's side…
The House of Hal had been abandoned for ages, covered in dust and cobwebs.
But the group of teens didn't care—they loved the creepy vibe.
Eight of them stood in a circle, each holding a lit white candle, listening to Glasses Guy tell the story of the House of Hal.
Apparently, a few years back, another bloodbath went down here, but the police hushed it up.
"It was Halloween night, just like this one. A bunch of students, like us, came to this haunted house for a party!" Glasses Guy said, his storytelling skills pulling everyone in.
Six of the teens—three couples who'd hit it off—were already clinging to each other. Ghost stories had a way of bringing guys and girls closer.
When a girl likes a guy, she'll dive into his arms to play up her vulnerability, whether she's actually scared or not.
Astrid, though, just rolled her eyes. She wasn't into ghost stories, thinking they were just a cheap trick guys used to get close to girls.
But Glasses Guy kept going.
"They brought a tape recorder, tons of food, even a disco ball, turning this place into a dance hall. They partied hard, not knowing their chaos woke up Angela, the demon sleeping in the house! Rawr!"
He lowered his voice, then let out a sudden yell.
"Ahh!" Blonde Girl screamed, diving into Leather Jacket Guy's arms, acting terrified.
Astrid crossed her arms and scoffed. "Lame jump scare. Even kids wouldn't fall for that."
Glasses Guy grinned. "Hold on, Astrid, the scary part's coming. Angela, woken up, climbed out of a secret room in the basement. First, she saw a couple getting cozy in the bathroom—kinda like those two."
He pointed at Brunette Girl and Red Riding Hood, who were already making out like no one else was there. If the group wasn't around, they'd probably be halfway through a "ranked match."
Short-Haired Girl, super into the story, leaned in. "What happened next?!"
"Angela tore their mouths apart!" Glasses Guy said dramatically.
Right then, Jock Guy chimed in, "Like this?"
Short-Haired Girl turned and screamed at the sight of a bloody, mangled face.
But it was just Jock Guy wearing a mask—obviously a planned prank with Glasses Guy.
Realizing she'd been had, Short-Haired Girl playfully smacked Jock Guy's chest. He grabbed her hand, and soon they were rolling around together.
Everyone laughed—except Astrid, who kept her poker face.
"So childish," she muttered.
Glasses Guy sidled up to her. "Astrid, you really that brave?"
"Hmph! Who doesn't know I'm the gutsiest girl in Acton?"
"Oh, really? That story I told was made up, but the secret room is real. Dare you to check it out?"
Astrid eyed him suspiciously. "You guys aren't setting me up for some prank, are you?"
"Come on, look at all the dust in here. Does it look like anyone's been through?"
Astrid thought about it. From the entrance to the living room, the floor was caked in dust. If someone had come through, there'd be footprints.
Still, she hesitated, not thrilled about doing something so risky.
Then Short-Haired Girl, back on her feet, smirked at Astrid. "What's wrong, Astrid? Scared?"
That was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. Whenever someone threw out a "you scared?" challenge, Astrid couldn't resist.
"Scared? Of this? Let's go!" she snapped.
The others started cheering her on.
Glasses Guy handed her a flashlight and egged her on. "Alright, if you pull this off, we'll all follow your lead from now on!"
"Hmph! Just wait!" Astrid gritted her teeth, grabbed the flashlight, and stood up.
"How do I get to this secret room?"
"Easy. It's supposedly in the basement. Find the basement, and you'll find the room."
Glasses Guy pointed to the basement entrance, boarded up with planks and nails like it was sealing something in.
Jock Guy pried the nails off with a tool, and the door creaked open on its own.
Astrid swallowed hard, staring into the dark, gaping entrance.
For a moment, she regretted agreeing to this.
But losing face scared her more than the pitch-black passage. So, she flicked on the flashlight and slowly descended into the basement.
The House of Hal's basement wasn't much different from any other—metal shelves stuffed with random junk.
Astrid swept her flashlight around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so she relaxed a bit.
After poking around, she didn't find any secret room, so she shouted up, "Where's this secret room? I don't see it!"
"Look closer! The entrance is on a wall with a weird symbol!" Glasses Guy called back.
Astrid scanned the walls and spotted a dark red inverted pentagram on the one opposite the entrance.
Studying it, she realized it looked like it was drawn in blood. Super creepy.
"I see the symbol! How do I open it?"
"Just smear some of your blood on it, and the room should open!"
That piqued Astrid's curiosity. "Weird. How do you know that?"
Before she could get an answer, she heard footsteps behind her.
"Because I've tried it before!"
A hand grabbed her head and slammed it against the pentagram.
Blood poured from her forehead as Glasses Guy wiped it onto the symbol.
"See? Works like a charm."
Dizzy and reeling, Astrid turned to see Glasses Guy's wicked grin.
"You…"
"Pretty tough skull, huh? Didn't even pass out from that?" he sneered, grabbing her face and slamming it again.
This time, Astrid couldn't hold on. Her vision went black, and she collapsed.
Angela, Beauty Edition