THE HAUNTING PAST GHOST MYSTERY

THE HAUNTING PAST: THE GHOST MYSTERY Talk about a unique "cold" case, when Tami and I took on the "case", of helping a ghost, nothing could be more unusual than the facts of this case. After traveling America, by air, on numerous cases, all of which were, atleast in part, supernatural, Tami and I had become so exhausted, in our searches, that all we wanted was a simple period of rest. This is why we applied for, and Mr. Brown, reluctantly, approved, our request, for some "down time". Tami and I were just "burned out", on chasing, and being chased by, all manner of ghost, and ghoul. Tami and I even hoped that, when the agency made reservations, for us, at a modern resort, that it would be impossible to find spirit activity in such a new place. No-sooner had Tami and I settled in, and had gone out, for a relaxing stroll, on a guest walking path, under a starlit sky, when we met a gentleman, who was dressed in late 18th century apparel. When the gentleman approached Tami and I, asking for our help, he begged our apologies, for his dress, however, he said that his mission was listed as "undercover". Just to humor the man, I asked the basic questions, while Tami took some notes. If the man were being honest with us, there was no way that we could confirm his story. According to the man, he said "My name is Donald West, and I am a professor of Temporal, and Historical, studies. I am degreed from both Harvard, and Yale, and my position is that of Field Research. I travel to various time periods, and either verify, or dis-prove, rumors, and such materials" If what he told us was true, then Donald West would not even be born, for centuries to come. As for his outfit, he said his latest assignment had been in the mid-1700's America. His assignment was either to find proof, that accused women were, in fact, "Devil Worshippers", or if the women had been falsely accused, by both peers, and history According to Donald West, he had spent months, undercover, trying to find answers. All he found, though, were educated women, who served as local healers, and mid-wives. When he sent his last report, to the future, the orders were sent for Dr. West to track down a "very powerful" woman. The administrators, in the distant future, wanted verifiable proof of whether the woman was, in fact, summoning demons, and using potions, on victims, or if the womans family name had been slandered, needlessly, for centuries. When Tami asked what had happened, Donald West said that all he remembered was traveling to the area, where history said the woman had lived. He was perplexed, though, when locals would not even speak of the woman, let alone give directions. According to Donald West "I had a devil of a time, finding the homestead, just as I had spent weeks searching the local coutryside, for the village. Although I was certain that I was being followed, everytime I used my Life Signs indicator, all it showed was local animal life." Donald West would continue "When I found the homestead, I dont know what I expected to find, yet what I found was not what I expected. In fact, what I found caused me to doubt the very history, of Earth". When Tami asked "Why is that?" Donald West said "According to official history, the witch lived in a lavish, manor, house, with servants, and slaves, to do her bidding. The woman was acused of having both "daytime", and "evening" jewels, and she only wore fine linen" When Tami asked "What did you really find?" Donald West said "I found a simple, two story, farm house. No servants. No slaves, No demons. Just a hearty woman, who worked her farm, along with her family. True, while her family was "away", a couple of times, I did search the house, and I did find recipes, and spell, books, but I found nothing which was harmful, or demonic. That is, not until the day when, during my own search, I noticed a village man sneak into the house, and leave a large volume, on the table. After the man left, I examined the volume, and noticed that it was written in a very old language. Although my own language skills are limited, past the 12th century A.D., I was able to read enough to know that this was a book, of curses" When Tami asked "What did you do?" Donald West said "I hid the book, in a storage bin, then went to ask the man his reason for leaving the book" When Tami asked "And?" Donald West said "He was bigger, and heavier, than I, but I remember catching him, at which point the man shot some arrows in my direction" "Okay, now it was becoming interesting", as Donald West said "I tried to encourage him to explain his reasons, for leaving the volume, but he told me to go back to the farm. He said that I would be called upon, to give "testimony", at the womans trial" "Shortly after I turned back, in the direction of the farm, I felt stabbing pains, in my chest. A moment later, I saw my body, penetrated by eight arrows, while the man was standing over me, saying "Now, the witch will PAY" Donald West promised us "I TRIED to give testimony, at the womans trial, but the people just ignored me, like I wasn't even there" The woman would be convicted, and she, and her family, would be burned, at the stake, while the family home was torched, and the land was deeded to the womans primary accuser. When Tami asked "Why didn't you just return to your "future"?" Donald West said "I would have LOVED to have done that, except that, without flesh-and-blood hands, I could not work my equipment. This is why I sought the two of you, out" Now, it was becoming interesting, as Donald West told us "You dont know it, yet, but your work will bring real respect to the field of paranormal investigations. In years to come, you will become recognized experts, in your field" When Tami said "Let me guess. A few lines, in the history books?" Donald West would say "Try volumes. Your work wil bring legitimacy to a field, which most people, of this time, just scoff at." I know why Tami found all of this humorous. After all, we were speaking with the ghost of a mann, who might not even be born, for as much as 400 years. Despite this, the man was, somehow, trapped, in our time, since he was murdered, in the 1700's. In our report, to the agency, requesting instruction, Tami and I had to find most creative ways to word our report. After all, even we would not have believed a report which stated "Scientist, who will not be born, for about 400 years, was sent to the 1700's, on assignment, to learn the facts, about a womans alleged "guilt", over witchcraft. Scientist mudered after spotting intruder, in home of accused witch, planting evidence. How do we proceed with this investigation?" When Tami submitted our "report", Mr. Brown contacted us, asking "Have you verified the mans identity, yet" Tami was first to ask "HOW do we do that? The man says he wont even be born, for centuries, to come" Mr. Brown would, calmly, remind us that, according to Donald West, he had contact, with various persons, while tracking the accused. Maybe there was some hope, of evidence, there. Tami, softly, suggested, to me "I guess we can, atleast, contact some of the peoples descendents, and check some old records." When I asked Mr. Brown "How do we verify the mans identity?" Mr. Brown, calm and professional, asked "HOW would you confirm what has not happened, yet?" Mr. Brown was right. The most we could do was verify if Donald West had, in fact, visited 1700's colonial America. Tami and I knew our "vacation" was over, when Mr. Brown said "I will arrange in-flight re-fuelling, and notify the pilots" An hour later, Tami and I met with our pilots, just outside the local air force hangar, and the pilots told us that, since the air force was washing down its own planes, and ours was available, our plane had been washed, inside and out, and deodorized. Once on-board, the pilot told us that take-off would be in about 10 minutes, with re-fuelling, about an hour later. (Since ours was not a combat aircraft, we were low-priority, for air force re-fuelling. Usually, this meant that Ghost Ship One would be down to about 10 gallons, before being re-fuelled) I think the reason why neither Tami, nor I, felt good, abut this case,, was because we had no background, on this haunting. All we had was a ghost, who was dressed, in period clothing, and who claimed to be from the future. Landing at the closest air force base, we found fliers, about a colonial festival, and a clerk, who said that people werew dressing "really weird", for the event. (This gave Tami and I an idea) When Tami read the pamphlet, then showed our ghost some photo's, Donald said "I should fit right in" Tami added that WE would have the ghosts "flank" Although our rental car was an automatic (Airport Security had "quarantined" all motor vehicles, arriving by air, since some one had phoned in a "tip", saying a car was flying in, loaded with high explosives) But, the worst part, about the rental car, was its total lack of engine power. Maybe the car was getting 75 miles per gallon, but this came at the price of moving along a highway, at just 15 miles per hour (and this was with my foot to the floor-boards, on the gas pedal). When pulled over, by an officer, for driving too SLOW, I challenged the officer, saying "See if YOU can get this thing going over 20 miles per hour" As a precaution, the officer had Tami and I wait, in the rear, of his patrol car, while he tested our rental. After the officer drove a short distance, then returned, he said "I'm not surprised that car is so slow. That make, and model, are not for highways. Best you take the off-ramp, ahead, and use the side roads" When Tami asked "How far, to our destination?" The officer said "In THAT car, atleast three hours" When Tami and I were "rolling" again, the wind picked up, and the car slowed, to 10 miles per hour. In our joint opinion, Tami and I could have WALKED as fast as this car drove. We just sat back, in quiet annoyance, as we crept along, first the off-ramp, then the side-roads. Along the way, Donald West said "I can make better time, on foot. I will meet you at the festival" Tami and I were still of the opinion that, shoot, at the rate this car "handled", holding speed at just 8-10 miles per hour, even WE could have walked faster than this car drove. When even a few, local, jalopies passed us, on the side roads, Tami and I wondered what good 75 miles per gallon was, in a car which could be passed, by a bicycle. What should have been, at most, a one hour drive, turned into a five hour nightmare, even as we, eventually, had to stop, just to stretch. By the time we arrived, in town, Donald West had made plenty of progress, since his human form made him look right at home, in this crowd. By the time we joined up with Donald, Tami had, glady, placed the call, asking the rental agency for a different car. When an agency rep asked what was wrong, with our rental, Tami explained it this way "If we had sex, in this car, right now, our children would be graduating college, before we reached the next town" In-town, since Tami knew how even I felt, about the rental, Tami decided to be the one, to turn it in. I would de-brief Donald West. When Tami turned in the rental, and report her dis-like, Tami did not know which was worse. The clerks disgustingly bright atttude, or her conntinuing reference to the cars 75 miles per gallon performance. Granted, Tami and I had used almost no gas, between the airport, and the town, but the cost, in lost TIME. Tami would, later, admit, to me, that she was about to belt the clerk, when Tami handed in the keys, saying "We would rather walk. It will be faster" It would seem that THIS got the clerks attention. Tami would be allowed to select another car, at no extra cost. What baffled Tami and I, about this, latest, "case" was how locals reacted to our presense. While locals thought that Tami and I were just doing background, on the area, for an article, in a history magazine, we, and Ghost Ship One, found locals most accomodating. A farmer even allowed Ghost Ship Onne to move in, making a verticle landing, in a field, which the farmer said he was planning to re-plant, later. Tami, being her usual self, found "friends", and history, all around her. Even the Hall of Records was "thrown open", for anything she could not find, on the internet. I was shown various landmarks, from both good points, in history, and from bad points. In fact, Tami and I were welcomed, like returning family, atleast until we began asking if anyone had heard of a stranger, dying under "mysterious circumstances", on an old farm. Once our inquiries became more focused, it seems that our "welcome" ended. At first, I thought it was my lack of social skills. But only until Tami was turned away, from those she had been talking to. Only then did it become clear that locals did NOT want something investigated. The final proof was when the previously friendly farmer told our pilots to "Get off my land! If you dont, I will fill that hull full of buck-shot" This is when Ghost Ship One moved to a field, away from town, and Tami and I vid-linked, with the main office, to compare notes. Even Doctor Wests spirit began to wonder if he had done something, maybe even hurt someone, and he just didn't remember. Mr. Brown's secretary agreed with Tami and I, though, over the fact that locals were trying to hide something. This was obvious since our welcome had not turned "cold" until we began asking pointed questions. The secretary would inform us "As Mr. Brown informed you, earlier, we can only track birth, and death, records, specifically for those, born in the past, or present. As a result, since your "friend" will not even be born, maybe for a thousand years, there is no way to verify anything, about this" When Tami suggested "Why dont we "recon" the farm. It is the last place that Doctor West remembers being alive" Our pilot would come to us, saying "That is OUT!" When Tami asked "Why? Whats wrong?" The pilot would say "When we contacted base, to inform our superiors, of the sudden move, we received satellite recon photo's, which show that the farm you want to "visit" is, NOW, under heavily-armed guard" When Tami would ask "Why place it under armed guard?" Mr. Browns secretary would say "That is obvious. There is something on, or under, that property, which someone does NOT want to be made public" The pilot would say "You can forget military projects,, since there are no bases anywhere near here. This area is, strictly, civilian" Still, this left the question of "WHAT" it was, which warranted armed guards. When Tami asked the pilot "WHEN did the guards appear, on-watch?", the pilot confirmed "Not until you made your inquiries" The secretary would agree. When Tami would ask Dr. West "Before you went to the farm, to investigate the claims, of witchcraft, what did you see, or hear, or whom did you talk to, about the incident?' When Dr. West would say "I remember hearing locals talking. Even before the "trial" started. I heard people talking, like the accused had, already, been found guilty. I thought this was so odd since the only "evidence" was testimony" When Tami would ask "Why did you find this odd?" Dr. West would say "You, probably, wont believe this, but, centuries from now, when Earth is colonizing other planets, a dispute will arise, over a planet Earth thinks has not been colonized. It will only be after we lay claim, to the planet, that it wil be learned that one, of the alien races, which we have encountered, had estabished a mining colony, on the planet. A war would result, and Earth would lose three colonies before another, vastly superior race would intervene, ending the war, and "Spelling out" the rules, of space, for Earth. "Had we known the rules of contact, who knows how many lives coud have been spared" When Tami would ask "This superior race. Do they have a name?" Dr. West would say "I am sorry I have spoken, too much, already". When this information was passed on, to the secretary, the secretary asked Tami to ask the question, which was on everyones minds. The question of "Why would an alien race even bother with human affairs?" Dr. West would say "Earth has been under "observation", for thousands of years. When the overseeing race saw the civilizing, of the Germanic lands, which were abandoning fighting, over resources, and were trading, with other peoples, the alien race decided not to just bring law, to this world, but to observe the results, as well. As of the last conference, which I was present, the "one page summary", as you would call iit, contained 50,000 pages, just of highlights, of Earths history" When Tami asked "Okay, so they gave us laws to live by. WHY did they stop the war?" Dr. West would say "All they would tell us was that Earth was an experiment. The race wants to know if we are able to LEARN our true potential" When Tami asked "So, WHY didnt they just "get involved", when your group began time travel?" Dr. West would say "They decided it was a worthy project. They felt it was a sign, of intelligence, that we wanted to study the planets past. "Learn from the facts", as it were" When Tami asked "Then why didnt they save you, from whatever happened?" Dr. West would say " I THINK I was supposed to LEARN from the experience" When Tami asked "Learn what? What death is like?" Dr. West would say "I suspect more like "When NOT to challenge other peoples beliefs" When Tami asked "Say what?" Dr. West would say "When I spoke to the villagers, I questioned the need for evidence. Those I spoke with were, un-fortunately, devotedly religious people." When I asked "What makes you think this?" Dr. West would say "I realized this when I asked people to question testimony. Ask for facts. I should have known that, when people began turning away from me, that I had insulted their beliefs. I forgot I was not in my own time" I would suggest "After you questioned the churches position, you suspect you were followed, to the farm, and killed, for questioning the churches position?" Dr. West would say "I am afraid so. I think I was killed, to AVOID the church being suspected of wrong-doing" Tami would ask "Well, we have plenty of thoughts, here, but what we dont have is proof. Without even a body, we have no case" When Dr. West would ask "So, what do we do, now?" I was trying to think of a way, into the property, so that we could claim atleast some of the mans equipment, when Tami came up with an idea. She asked Dr. West "What if we placed a deliberate, yet coded, message, into a report? How long would it take to reach your time?" Dr. West would say "Each team has been provided, with such a coded message. I just dont know how ong it will take, for my time, to track us." When Tami would ask me "What harm could it do?" I agreed. Dr. West provided Tami with the code message, which we, then, applied to our report, to base. Then, the freakiest thing, ever, happened, to us. Two "security guards" materialized, on the plane, and asked "Please, come with us". When Tami asked "Where to?" a guard said "Not where. When". When Tami and I joined the "guards", our reality dissolved, around us, and was replaced with what looked like colonial America. When Tami asked "What?" The guard said "Dont worry. After you do it, a few times, you get used to it". The other guard pointed off, into the distance, then handed Tami and I, each, a pair of glasses, which, apparently, had laser-targetting built in. We watched as Dr. West asked the man his reason, for planting the "witchcraft" book, at the homestead, then watched as Dr. West, at the mans urging, began to return to the home. We watched Dr. West die, then the man, who planted the volume would say "Fool! No one challenges the authority, of the Lord, our God." and walked away. Tami and I, then, watched, and learned the reason why Dr. West could not find his resting place. We observed as no less, than five other "security guards", all "heavily" armed, reclaimed the doctors body. These guards, and our guards, exchanged a set of code words, then our guards offered to let us share the experience, of a soul being reunited with its body. When Tami asked "How? Where?" The guard would say "Even I dont understand the HOW, but the where is our own time". In a quest, for knowledge, Tami and I agreed to undertake the journey, if for no other reason than to find out what would become of mankind. I wont try to describe the place Tami and I were brought to, since no one would believe it, anyway. Al Tami and I could do was marvel at the beauty, of what a beautiful world Earth could be, if only we could abandon prejudice, and war. I, also, wont try to describe the process, by which Dr. Wests body, and spirit, were re-united. It was so far beyond our comprehension that even science fiction has, yet, to dream of it. After Dr. Wests body, and spirit, were reunited, the doctor, now flesh and bood, would escort Tami and I to a memorial, erected to honor our work. According to Dr. West "In time, your work will come to influence others into looking beyond the obvious, and questions, of sanity, will be replaced with questions of the need for such things, as war." When Tami would ask "Where are we. I mean what date?" Dr. West would say "We have not used your calendar for longer than I can remember." When the Doctor gave us a date, based upon the modern calendar, neither of us understood. This is when Tami would ask "Without the Roman calendar, HOW do you set your time-travel coordinates?" Dr. West would say "We have a computer, which makes the calculations. But, not a computer, as you think of them. Ours is organic, intelligent, and self-aware. Its computing speed is beyond anything else." When Tami asked "What will happen to you?" Dr. West would say "Board of Review. Most likely, six months, in prison, for violating several laws, of time-travel, including contacting the two of you. I will be fine, though. It has been years, since my last infraction. The real punishment goes to those who, routinely, violate the law." (Personally, I did not WANT to know what "real punishment" meant.) Before our guards returned us, to our time, they gave us some sort of pill, saying "Frequent time travel is terrible for digestion. Take these, and you will be fine". When Tami asked "If we dont take them?" The guard made a motion of a person being sick, in the toilet. Once we were returned to our present, our guards, pilotly, bowed, then turned away, and seemed to vanish into what looked like a "pool of water", in the air. The guards were right, though. The upset stomach lasted only a brief second, before the pills settled our stomachs. Even as Tami was wondering if we could get back to our "vacation", now, I wondered if there were other "patrols", out there. Maybe even watching us, now. How many historical events had patrols, such as Dr. West's, observed, over time? How much time did Earth have, before the war, which would, allegedly, almost destroy the planet, and lead to a complete re-building? If Tami and I were so good, at keeping secrets, HOW had the future known of us, at all? Oh, well, questions, to be answered, "in the future" In the distant future, Dr. West would be speaking to a collegue, who would ask "Do you think they suspect?" Dr. West would say "I doubt it. They are intelligent, and capable, but they live for facts, and evidence. By the time the truth makes itself known, it will be too late to change things. They were the right choice. I will give the council that much. We wil just have to wait, and see, what they do, with what they have learned".

THE HAUNTING PAST MYSTERY OF THE CORPORATE LODGE

THE HAUNTING PAST: MYSTERY OF THE CORPORATE LODGE Although Mr. Brown had been promising Tami and I a well-deserved vacation, especially after our previous vacation had been "cut-short", thanks to Dr. Donald West. The ghost, of a man, born in the distant future, yet murdered, while on assignment, in the past. Boy! Was that ever a report, to fill in. Dealing with the ghost, of a man who would not be born, for un-told centuries. Mr. Brown was, usually, good for his word, but it seems that Tami and I were just too good at our job. It seems that we were so good, at laying spirits to rest, that we had a LONG list, of clients, who wanted our services. Mr. Brown kept sending us out since none of our cases ever made its way into national headlines. Man, though, were we putting the miles, on our plane, though. If this were a commercial aircraft, Tami and I might have close to one million "frequent-flyer" miles. Even more than myself, though, Tami never seemed to lose her excitement, for going onto new cases. I guess that I could understand her reason, though. After all, the only time when she was not heavily medicated was when we were on a case. The state, though, had loosened its grip, on Tami, ever since the Richmond Incident, and the agencies ensuing investigation. There was just too much risk, of the facts getting out, and the states practices being exposed. No doubt, this is, also, why the state "relaxed" its "driving, for work only" condition, on Tami's drivers license. Besides, what good was this restriction, anyway? The only time when Tami drove was when we were ON a case. I guess that I had nothing to complain about, either. After all, the only thing I had given up, for this job, was being a minimum wage, cash-pay, janitor. I had given up dumping trash, in return for jet-flights, chasing spirits, and making a fortune, in commissions, off of satisfied clients. Tami and I HAD been looking forward to a spirit-free vacation, but our hopes were dashed when Mr. Brown asked us to review another case. Tami and I knew something was "fishy" when Mr. Brown would say "I dont think it is anything more than a joke, but I would like your review." Well, atleast as long as we were "on-duty", Tami and I could indulge in some Italian food. Courtesy of our expense account. As Tami and I were, soon, to learn, this case did seem a bit strange, as in suspicious. After all, according to the file, the property had been in the same family, for centuries, yet, only recently had the property become spiritually active? According to the file, the same family had owned the property, for centuries, with no problem and, according to the file, the family only sold the place when they could no-longer afford the taxes. Now, some corporation had bought the place, to turn it into an "executive retreat", or rest area. Only now that the place was under corporate ownership, was the place being suspected of being haunted. Tami was first to notice that, although the same family had owned the land, for centuries, there was no mention of the home, itself, being centuries old. As for the reports, of spiritual "activity", it was being alleged that workers were being "thrown out" of windows, or "dragged through" doorways. What drew our attention, though, were the reports of the vandalism. If the reports were accurate, the site foreman would no-sooner sign off, on completed work, at the end, of one work day, when the crew would return, the next morning, to find all of the new work torn from the walls. Allegedly, the property was secured, each night, and the foreman signed off, on this, as well. Each morning, the foreman would un-lock the property, and find the vandalism. The time, when workers walked off the job, saying the place was "off", was the day when, it is claimed, a worker was dragged to a window, in broad daylight. IF the incident report was accurate, nearly a dozen workers, and the foreman, watched as the worker, in question, was dragged to the window, then thrown through the glass, to land two stories below. Tami's question was to wonder just WHAT had happened, to set off the attack. After all, Tami and I knew that neither animals, nor spirits, attack, without provocation. What could have provoked the spirit? No matter which angle Tami and I approached the question from, we "dead-ended" at the some place. When Tami reported our suspicions, to Mr. Brown, he agreed with our conclusion, that a first-hand, site evaluation, was in order. Result, all that Tami and I had to do was await our planes turn, at the fuel pumps, before setting off, again. The good news, we received, while enroute, was that there was a place, already cleared, on the property, for the plane to land. According to the information, though, this space was not cleared, in anticipation of the plane's arrival. The space, in question, had been cleared, in preparation for the construction of tennis courts. It just happened to be large enough for our plane to touch down. I dont know why but, from the moment, when the plane touched down, Tami, myself, and our pilots, agreed that we were being watched, just as we were watched, on the castle case. Upon arrival, though, I could see why the former owners had considered this property a "maintenance headache". The main house was so large, and sweeping, and the lawns, so wide, that it must have cost a fortune, just in labor, to maintain the place. If the file was correct, though, the same family had owned the place, for centuries. Tami, though, was hooked on the part, of the report, which stated that the family had owned the "property", for centuries. From her previous research, Tami had learned that most families list home ownership, primarily, and property ownership, as a secondary asset. She wondered WHY this family had chosen a different way of posting ownership. While Tami went about, searching records, and doing her best work, of talking to people, I would start with our ground-penetrating radar, just to see if anything, underground, might be causing atleast some of the problems. What I found was confusing, to say the least. In fact, when the results began coming in, I decided to check the interior, of the foundation, to see if the information was factual. With a key, supplied by the property owner, I went to the basement, where I found more than one surprise. The first surprise, which I documented, was that the current house was not built on its own foundation. For reasons, unknown, the current house was built on top of an older foundation. This was obvious by the fact that the foundation "floor" was nothing more than dry soil. As for the walls, they were the classic rubble-stone, of early American homes. In colonial days, people actually just piled such stones, to shape rough walls, then pack the joints with sod, mortar, or other materials. The evidence, of more modern building practices, was evident in the fact that the foundation, of the current home, was leveled, using something, like lime mortar, to level the stone tops, so that red bricks, and then stone, could be added, on top. Then, there was the patch. A section, of wall, obviously added later, forming an archway, which was bricked up, with red brick. Now I understood the G.P.R. results. What the radar was picking up was abandoned sections, of an older house, upon whose foundation, the current house, was built. After reviewing the foundation, I took a walk over to where the report said that "lights", like river-boats used, were being seen. Maybe I was about 250 feet from the house when, before I came to the small creek, which ran along the property, I noticed evidence, of landscaping work. Were I not a student, of architecture, myself, I woulld have missed the signs, of a re-modelled landscape. As for the creek, itself, there was no doubt that the waterway was man-made. Although the sides were quaried, to give the appearance, of natural weathering, the seams were too regular, and the grout did not match the material. Besides this, the sides, and bottom, were too shiny to be natural. It was obvious, even to me, that this creek had been installed as a "water feature", once the rest of the waterway was filled in. When I measured the distance, from original shore-line, to shore-line, I realized that this waterway had been a river, wide enough for shipping, in colonial days. That evening, while Tami and I compared notes, Tami verified that, at one point, this place had been a "working dock", complete with hoists, and cranes. It seems that locals built the dock at a time when the kings taxes were making life impossible, for colonists. The dock was built of whatever the locals could find, and manned by local labor. There was even a sort-of water-front town, to serve the ships needs. This town included a general store, and, of course, a whore-house. The dock was destroyed only after word came forth that imperial forces were on patrol, looking for such places, which were "denying the king his due" (taxes). By the time the red-coats arrived, in the village, eight months later, all evidence, of the dock, was erased. The river was even diverted, with only a small channel, to provide water, to the new creek. The red coats must have accepted the villagers story, about the waterway, since it is reported that the soldiers just rode off, to check on other reports. According to Tami's research, the family, who owned the property, must have made enough money, from the dock operations, since part of this money was used to build an older version, of the current house. Whether this older house was the foundation, which was buried, under the current house, even Tami was not for certain. According to her research, and interviews, atleast four homes had sat, on this land, at different times. Tami would say that one owner, who was too lazy to work, just spent his life lounging, and selling off property, when debts were due. Then, the next owner spent years buying the land back, for restoration work. Another story said that the lands had been parcelled out, at one point, and that a community was built, on the location. As Tami pointed out, though, so much, of this information, was nothing more than "word-of-mouth". Very little was verified. That afternoon, as Tami and I were enjoying some "sliced chicken strips, with garlic enhanced wheat flour" (chicken and garlic bread), the planes visual sensors came on alert, for something neither of us expected to see. As if out of "nowhere", a white fog enveloped Ghost Ship One, and Tami and I could make out nothing. Even the planes own radar was blank. The fog was so thick that it reminded Tami and I of trying to see through a bed sheet. When the fog passed, neither of us could believe our eyes. No longer was our ship sitting on the un-finished foundations, for tennis courts. Now, somehow, our plane was sitting in the middle of a village, with locals looking upon the plane like we were some kind of monster. After several strikes, from what sounded like clubs, stones, and so on, the "fog" "enveloped" the plane, again, for several moments. When it cleared, we were back on the homes grounds, and our pilots were asking where we had been. (According to the pilots, the plane had not vanished, for a few minutes, but for a few days). When the planes chronometer was checked, it, and our gear, was found to be almost four days behind all other equipment. Still, this did not answer the question of WHO might be haunting the place, and WHY. Tami and I would be on-site, for almost three weeks, before we had our own, first encounter, with on-site spirits. What seemed to baffle the spirits, though, was the fact that we did not scare, easily. One spirit even skulked around, for nearly an hour, after Tami responded to the "mans" best scare tactic, by saying "Is THAT the best you can do?" When the ghost asked "You are not frightened of me?" Tami would ask "What for? I have seen much worse, before". I had to laugh, when a female ghost tried to scare me, claiming she could reach inside my trousers, and remove my man-hood. I told her "I would love to see you try". After trying a series, of cheap, haunted house, tricks, such as ratting chains, moans, and so on (oh, yeah, one ghost even tried the old headless act), the spirits seemed annoyed that Tami and I were not scared. Why should we be? After all, no ghosts had ever actually done us any harm. Although it took a bit of patience, on Tami's part, the spirits did begin to divluge the reason for the increase, in spirit activity. To put it simply, the spirits liked the house, the way that it was, and the noise, generated, by the work crews, was "maddening", to those who were trying to "Rest In Peace". (Yes, it seems that spirits, often, prefer quiet spaces, for rest, and reflection, as we as humans do). Besides the noise, there was the fact that, as workers tore out sections, of walls, to install new systems, the spirits felt as though part of they, themselves, was being "torn apart". When Tami assembled a group, of the most predominant spirits, who, regularly, haunted the property, she left it to me to work out a possible compromise. Boy, when I suggested the spirits take up residence, elsewhere, the spirits "stood their ground", suggesting that the humans should look elsewhere, for their accomodations. After all, humans could move about far easier than spirits can. One spirit even reminded Tami that, for spirits, the place, where they die, is the place they are condemned to haunt. The female spirit suggested that Tami consider it a form of paranormal "maximum security prison". For the deceased, though, there was no such thing as "parole". This is when I made another suggestion. Due to the size, of the property, I suggested that the corporation could build another house, on the lands. The spirits could keep their home, and the living could have their space. Each would keep clear of the other. To my amazement, a man, who seemed a sort-of "leader", of the spirits, added another condition, to the offer. When he said he wanted to be sure that, if the dead kept the peace, that the living would show mutual respect. No wild parties, loud music, and so on. Each side would respect the rights of the other. After Tami agreed that we would take this offer, to management, and we returned to the plane, for a video conference, neither of us was shocked, by Mr. Brown's reaction, to the proposed deal. When Mr. Brown asked "Just HOW are we supposed to enforce this agreement, provided that management agrees?" If the ghosts make trouble, just WHAT action CAN be, legaly, taken, against dead people?" For Tami and I, the question was more a concern, of the living. HOW could a muti-billion-dolar corporation be held to account, if its personnel got "out of hand"? Never mind the spirits. What if the humans got "out of hand"? THIS was the spirits main concern. Although Mr. Brown would promise that Mr. Blue would take the offer to corporate management, the agency was not willing to promise the spirits anything. Besides, HOW does one hold a dead person to a contract? The last time a living person tried to hold dead people accountable for their actions, the living person had been sent away, for a "long rest". Currently, this person was under observation, at a very PRIVATE care facility. Two days later, even as Tami was interviewing the spirit, of a long-dead, former, owner, of the land, and the man was verifying that his home had been burned down, by a servant, who was hoping for "special consideration", for their efforts. It was something to do with conditions of a will, or dowery. Something about, "As long as the house stands, the couple must remain married, whether the union is good, or ill". The servant had waited until the wife, and children, were away, and the man was sleeping in his usual place. A shack to the rear of the house. When the fire gutted the house, the wife wasted no time packing herself, and her children, back to Boston, where her own family had maintained a residence, for centuries. The man used part of his portion, of the family fortune, to rebuild the house, and another portion, to build the docks, and the small town. The spirit even told Tami "That was the best move I, ever, made. I may have paid out half of my part, of the fortune, to build the venture, but I was able to re-pay this, within two years of the dock being open." When Tami asked "What of your wife?" The man said "The family sent word, a few years later. It seems that my wife took up with a man, whom, she thought, was of far better breeding than I was. Turns out, he forged everything, then worked a deal which left him in total control of my wifes finances. By the time her father found out what was going on, the man had "raided" my wife's funds, and was working on the family's fortune, when her father found him out." When Tami asked "Did he go to prison, for his actions?", the spirit said "No, my girl. The family did not want it known that they were being pilferred, so they handled things, nice and quiet." When Tami asked "As in?" The spirit said "To my knowledge, my wife was dis-inherited, and ended up working as both a wash-woman, and a whore." When Tami asked "Your children?" The spirit bowed his head as he said "All I heard was rumors. Some say the children were left to starve while others say they was sold off, as slaves" Tami was about to press the man, asking why he had not gone to the police, for search warrants, but, she caught herself, remembering that search warrants, drag nets, and other crime-fighting tools were 20th century inventions. None had been invented, while this man was alive. The spirit did admit to a couple of affairs, after the dock turned into a success. He fathered four, more, children, by local women, and made sure that both the mothers, and the children, were taken care of. He said "It was odd, but my women never asked for much. Just enough to keep the children fed, and a roof over their heads. This, even as my own fortunes were growing, along with the dock." The spirit would add something else when he mentioned "One thing was odd, and I never figured it out". When Tami asked "What was that?" The spirit said "Even while the dock was in operation, and I was earning large sums, of cash, some fellow kept offering to burn the place to the ground, and let me take the insurance money." When Tami would ask "Arson for hire?", the spirit would say "I never found out. All I know is that, when word, of the red coats, reached the dock, and my friends and I were considering how to cover our tracks, the man just suggested, as calmly as you please, "I can make the dock go away, for just a small price. All I need is twenty-four hours" When Tami asked "What happened?", the spirit said "When local villages sent out word, that the red-coats were coming, my friends and I stripped whatever we could hide, from the docks, then I paid the mans fee." the spirit then added "True to his word, within twenty four hours, the dock was nothing more than cinders. Once this was done, we diverted the river, built the creek, then put on our best "innocent" faces, when the regulars came to town" When Tami asked about the story, about a former owner pawning the lands, since he was too lazy to work, the mans spirit said "My women would, never, allow such a thing. They insisted that our children WORK for what they wanted." This would be when another gentleman came forward, and told Tami "The man you speak of was MY son. The lazy, good-for-nothing. Spent his whole life spending his inheritance, like there would be no end, to the money. Eventually, I have to "cut him off". Gave the rest of my money to my other children, and just let him live on, in the house." When Tami would ask "Then, what about the story, of his pawning the lands? How could he do so, without approval?" The spirit man would say "Dear girl, in YOUR century, everything is done via paper, with people talking to one another, even over great distances. In my day, though, a mans word was his bond. No such thing as "background-checks". Especially not with the people my son did business with. He was allowed to run up as much debt as our lands were worth. He, then, had to sell much of the lands, to cover his debts. By the time he died, he had sold everything that he could, and spent his final years in a small shed, at the edge of the property." When Tami asked "If he blew his inheritance, then WHO bought the lands, and restored the estate?" The spirit would say "My other children pulled their resources, then re-purhased the lands, after no one would have anything to do, with my son, any longer." When Tami asked "What about the house? It looks old, yet its construction is early twentieth century. Why?" This is when the spirit, of a nun, came forward, saying "In life, I was in charge of the family records. I will show you how history came to be". As if surrounded by a mist, which seemed to swirl up, from the stone floor, Tami and the nun, watched as house-after-house was built on the land. When times were plentiful, and resources abundant, the house was added onto, until it was like a grand palace. In leaner times, though, sections, of the house, were closed off, and allowed to fall into dis-repair, even as lots were rented out, to cover home maintenance costs. As the nun "moderated" the "tour", her soft voice would cause Tami to relax, even as the nun spoke of her own story. "I was studying at the nunnery, at Yale, when the Catholic Church sent word of my assignment. I was to be sent to one, of the lesser, American, colonies, where I was to provide aid to the local group, of sisters. According to the church, I was to expect lodging in a small cabin, which the sisterhood operated. It would not be much, but, since I would spend my time ministering to the local populations, I would not have much time to consider my accomodations. By the time I arrived, it seems that the sisters had sent word, to other churches, as well, and two, other, sisters were using my assigned space. Although I was prepared to "make do", with whatever I could find, it seems that the owner, of this land, was a good son, of the church, and offered me lodgings, until mine became available, with the sisters. As a result, I had a warm, dry, bed, a private room, and more comfort than I could have hoped for. The mans "price" was minimal, as well. He only asked that I preside over any rituals, such as holidays, births, marriages, and so on. As long as I fulfilled my duties, to the church, I would be allowed to remain on the grounds. I just never thought that I would remain in these surroundings, for so many years. In fact, I not only gave Christenings, but I watched the family's children grow to adulthood, then I presided over their children. As for the reason for my prolonged presence, it seems that this was two-fold. In the primary sense, not matter how many times I contacted the church, asking if I might be needed, elsewhere, all the church would respond was "The mattter is being considered" Tami would say "In other words, Dont call us. We'll call you" The nun would say "How quaint, yet, essentially, correct. I would find the family willing to retain my presense, far past my usefulness, to the church. In fact, by my later years, I would find that the family was caring for my aged body, MORE than I was caring for their spiritual welfare. Still, I made myself useful, not just with helping the wife with the home, and property, but, also, by cataloging every bit of information, which was available, not just to the family, but to the community, as well. When Tami would ask "Were you here, during the dock, and river-side town, days?" The nun would say "Heavens, no. I came upon the settlement at a time, after the colonies declared independence. The church sent the nuns in the hope of bringing the rebel colonies back under his majesties divine protection. The throne remaining loyal to the church." After the nun would add that she was buried on the property, Tami had a terrible thought, and asked the spirit "Do you remember WHERE you were buried?" The nun would say "Heavens, child, in my day, every property had a cemetary facing the light of the Divine Star". When Tami would ask "Divine Star? Dont you mean the North Star?" The nun would say "Every cemetary faced the direction where the Light, of the Lord, proclaimed the coming Birth, of Chirst, Our Lord". When Tami asked the nun to point out where that spot was, the "misty tour of time" evaporated, the nun looked out of a window, and said "About where those men are standing, in the distance, there. By the way, WHAT are they doing?" Tami would say "I have a feeling that they are about to dig you up". With that, Tami would rush out of the house, trying to stop the construction, before Tami could verify any grave-sites. She was too late, though, as a worker let out a yell, which bordered on a shriek. Tami did not have to SEE what had caused the scream since she was sure of what had been found. When a worker called out "Who the hell would be stupid enough to bury bones, on private property?" Tami would say "The former owners, back in the day, when such burials were legal, and church sanctioned". When the worker would tell Tami "No offense, but the law says we cannot disturb graves. How do we set the foundation in a graveyard?" Tami would say "If you ask your boss, no doubt, they will tell you to move your equipment elsewhere." When the worker asked "Where? Over there?" Tami would not mention that the spirit, of the nun, was present, and gesturing as to how far, and in what directions, the cemetary stretched. The problem, which Tami saw, was that three, major, buildings, were planned, for the middle of the cemetary. Tami would have to act, fast, before the corporation just ordered the bones scooped up, and carted off. What baffled Tami was how, when she approached the local clergy, THIS time, the ministers were not so evasive, about Tami's inquiries. THIS time, the ministers were willing to verify that the cemetary existed, and that it was on local records. Even before the corporate entourage arrived, with a court paper, the ministers had encouraged the local sheriff to take out a local order, prohibiting desecration of a cemetary. To managements annoyance, the ministers staff was more than willing to outline the boundaries, of the old cemetary. The church also took care to mark the "firm" banks, of the old river, and not to suggest development, too close to the shore. It was when the chairman, of the board, proclaimed "I will teach these ghosts a lesson. As of tomorrow, I will start LEVELING this place! Lets see these ghosts try to haunt a pile of rubble". Tami and I could have predicted what would happen, next, just as it had happened, before. There was a loud clap, of thunder, then a voice BOOMED, as though from over-amped speakers, as the voice called out "Who DARES threaten this noble house?!" When the chairman said "I DARE! Thats who!" The next thing everyone saw was the chairman being "levitated" some fifty feet from the ground, as the voice boomed "Puny mortal. We have resided at this place, for centuries. What right have you, to destroy our home?" Tami and I, both, whispered "Dont say it." But the man did, anyway. When the chairman said "My right, of ownership. I OWN this place. Pack your crap up and get out!" The spirit, of the previous owner, must have lost his "self control", since he hurtled the man across the distance, and against a tree, hard enough to break the mans neck. After the entourage saw their boss meet his fate, and turned to the spirit, saying "You have killed him. Thats illegal. Charges will be...", then the lawyer realized they were speaking to a ghost. Their proud stance suddenly dissipated as they realized how stupid it would be, to try to bring charges against a ghost. As Mr. Brown had asked, previously: "Just HOW would one prosecute a ghost?" As well as the question of "What good would a prison term be, for someone, already dead?", and the ever-laughable "What good would a life sentence be, on a dead person?" When the corporation would ask our agency how the corporation should handle this matter, Mr. Brown would suggest donating the land, to the local church, and let the clergy worry about the place. Mr. Brown would, suggest, though, that, prior to the donation, it would be a great "gesture of Goodwill", if the corporation were to restore the house, and the grounds. Great publicity. The corporation would agree. Later, just as Tami and I were getting ready to relax, for awhile, Mr. Brown would say "Sorry, but I would ask you to review another case. This one, though is a real "dousy". The client claims that ghosts are chasing them about. And not just at home, either." Well, atleast Tami and I would be treated to a farewell dinner, of fabulous, homemade, pizza's, and garlic bread, as well as salads, and drinks, courtesy of a greatful city, and its, now "Resting In Peace" deceased.

THE HAUNTING PAST ENTER GHOST SHIP ONE

THE HAUNTING PAST #4 ENTER: GHOST SHIP 1 After completion of our report, on the events at the gaming house, Tami and I were more than prepared for a bit of rest. The agency also wanted us to take some time off, while they cleared my arrest record. For reasons, un-clear to Mr. Brown, Tami, or myself,it seems that, although Tami and I were performing, in excellent capacity, by keeping our investigations OUT of the media, someone else was VERY interested in our adventures. Some man contacted the firm, specifically asking for Tami and I, to work a case, in Europe, specifically in Scotland, for him. He was even willing to pay as high as nine figures in salary, for Tami and I to do an investigation, for him. When Tami asked the obvious question of "Who is he?" Mr. Brown would say that his agency staff was, still, reviewing this information. Tami and I would have found this strange to hear, from the always-fully-informed Mr. Brown. His staff made sure that he had full backgrounds on everyone, from office supply store staff, to law enforcement, to caterers, and even the buildings janitor staff. Mr. Brown had known about Tami's "severe depression", and my own, physical, disability, before we even met with him. In fact, Mr. Brown even knew our doctors names, and which drugs we took. Suddenly, though, something had changed. As if out of the blue, Mr. Browns agents were missing connecting flights, and reservations were cancelled. Mr. Browns secretary could not understand this, either. The woman was so into the smallest details that, on previous cases, everything was set up, and waiting, at each investigation, no matter whom the agent was. This was Mr. Browns policy. Mr. Brown actually felt that the public would pay much more attention to a person, who was awaiting connections, than a person who just walked through a port, and on, to their destination. Mr. Brown then brought an amusing message to our attention, when he said that the latest client was offering to supply Tami and I with the latest jumbo jet, in the Boeing 747 series. The 400 model. The client was even willing to customize the planes interior, in anyway that we chose, for our confort. The client even suggested a color scheme for the jet. Tami would say that this would be a great way to blow our cover. Start showing up in a jumbo jet. Yeah, real "low" key. I agreed, asking how loud we should make the "bells and whistles", announcing our presence. By way of being polite, to the potential client, Tami and I put together a lay-out of what we would consider to be a much more "conservative" aircraft. Tami and I suggested that, if a person wanted to offer us an airplane, that they make it one of those air force Starlifter units. Our rationale was that the public had seen so many of these planes, over the years, that no one would pay one the slightest attention. We suggested that the plane be kept the same as it was, in the air force. NO fancy paint jobs. From the outside, the plane would look no different from the thousand, or so, other transport planes the air force used, everyday. It would be the inside, which would be different. The inside, we would turn into a "mobile home" of sorts. Since the plane would be large enough, we could add not only living space, but a fully equipped lab, as well. When our suggestion was complete, Mr. Brown would e-mail it, to the potential client, while agreeing with us that the client would look elsewhere, for his agents, once he read our deal. After this, Mr. Brown had Tami and I start reviewing a case, coming out of the French Quarter, of New Orleans. According to reports, it would seem that people were alledging to see some of the victims, of Hurricane Katrina, walking the streets, especially after dark. If the reports were to be believed, when victims were seen, they would ask a common question, of the living. "Which way to my home?" In more than a few reports, the witness would claim to actually know the ghost. The witness would know the person was dead. Although Tami got irate, at reading this, asking how people could be so cruel, as to report seeing the dead walking the streets, I had to wonder how much of this could be alcohol, or drug, induced. Then, there was another possibility to consider. VooDoo Could some local practitioner be fooling people, maybe with actors? I would only consider this since the practice was wide spread belief, in New Orleans, and its outlying area's. Just how many citizens actually believed was un-certain, but I agreed with Tami that, whatever this was, it was a most cruel joke, to play on locals. Tami and I were just preparing to "march" into New Orleans,"guns blazing", and root out the source of talk of the Katrina victims, turning the chief architects over to the police, for prosecution, when Mr. Brown asked Tami and I to join him on a trip, to the airport. When we agreed, we drove onto the runways, past elegant Lear, and Gulf Stream, jets, and some larger planes, before stopping in front of the local air national guard hangar. Tami and I followed Mr. Brown into the hangar, staying as close as possible to him, even as we passed some very beautiful, and functional, planes. Mr. Brown then brought us to a halt before a cargo plane. We could see that it had been retro-fitted with its jet engines, as the weld-points were clear to see. What surprised us was when Mr. Brown gave the air personnel a code-word, and a staff sargeant called forth two men, from the plane. Neither one looked very friendly, atleast at first, but the staff sargeant told us that these would be our pilots. They were retired air force, but the men knew this cargo plane inside out. From the outside, the plane did not look like much. Just a non-descript military plane. That was the outside. What was amazing was the interior. It looked almost identical, to the letter, of our proposal. When we looked at Mr. Brown, he said "Thats right, the client took your proposal just as seriously as I want you to take this case". When Tami asked "But, what about New Orleans?", Mr. Brown would say "Taken care of. The question is "Do you accept this gift, and the case?" We agreed, just for the chance to see what this plane could do. Within 24 hours, Tami and I were packed, and the plane had its flight clearance. The pilot did tell us that this trip would be longer than on a commercial aircraft, since this was a cargo transport. It was designed for hauling cargo, not for speed. (I just wish I knew how our "benefactor" had been able to secure permission for the plane to keep its air force code number). Prior to take-off, the staff sargeant had told Tami and I that we were permitted to name the plane, if we chose to. I could see the pilots relief when Tami and I asked "Whats wrong with its code-name?" Over the next year, and some additional missions, ground crews would begin calling our plane "Ghost Ship". Primarily, I think that this is because we seemed to turn up any place where there were stories of hauntings. In time, our pilots thought they would heckle the arrogant ground crews, by calling the plane Ghost Ship 1, but the ploy back-fired. Instead of laughing it off, and returning to the air force designation, we would become, UN-officially, known as Ghost Ship 1. On this trip, though, Tami and I would read up on what our client wanted us to investigate. According to the file, some rich person, from way back, made a fortune, in an un-specified field, and used their riches to buy a mountain. This mountain, the person then hired stone masons to carve into a multi-level castle, with plenty of protective barriers. Even as the castle was being carved, out of the living rock, the owner hired another team, to begin building a very deep moat, at the base of the mountain. The report speculated that the castle took fifty, or more, years to carve, since it was not only the outside, which was carved. It seems that the interior was carved out of the very same rock. The report even said that a recent survey had found atleast ten above ground levels, and some more, below ground. From some drawings, which accompanied the file, Tami and I could see that it seemed like some "tunnel-rats" had carved out a large portion of the mountains interior. According to the cover letter, the client said that he didn't even know that the place was "haunted" until after he purchased it. He said that he purchased it as a "vacation" place, but that he, and his family, had been run out of the place, by something "in-human". Something with fangs,claws, and a wailing voice, which turned his blood to ice. His point, in hiring us, was to find out what was haunting the place, why it was haunting, then get rid of it. The man insisted that he was not being driven out of a property, he had paid $200 million for, not by some "spook". I wondered if the client understood that Tami and I were investigators, not exorcisers. Our job was to verify the details, of cases, and try to determine reasons for hauntings. This is when Tami would ask, out-loud, "I wonder if he understands that we are not GhostBusters? Not the originals, nor the later ones." Arriving in Scotland, by the feel, of the soft landing, I would have thought that our pilots landed us at an ultra-modern airport, not in an un-used meadow, not far from the castle. The worst part was that we arrived at dusk, right when such old, and historic, places take on the shadows, of gothic horror stories. Tami would say that the place reminded her of the Disney classic "Night on Bald Mountain". Personally, I wouldn't go quite that far, but, in the shadow, of twilight, it was not a place I would want to be alone in. This is why I suggested that our first night just be "local recon". Lets just watch and see what the castle had to show us. Multiple times, the first night, and other nights, Tami, myself, and even our pilots, would see candles moving about, but even our trained pilots, with their military binoculars, could not see what was behind the candles. This is why one pilot suggested that the persons, holding the candles, were just wearing classic, Halloween, costumes, like "Grim Reaper". The black material would blend in, with the background, and hide the wearer from view. When I asked how the air force would handle similar un-knowns, the pilots would say to send out recon, at first light, and study the area, for foot-prints. If any were found, we would know that our "floating" candles had human hands attached. Still, we slept fitfully, that night. I dont know why but I felt as though the castle was looming over our plane, as if it were observing our actions. Come daylight, the four of us (with the experienced soldiers out front), took a walk towards the castle. The soldiers were quick to notice that there were no tire tracks, near the edge of the moat. They also noted that some jerk had built access ways from the shore, to the castle, but had not taken the process of "settling" into account. The soldier showed us some carved, stone, steps, which lead down to the accessway, but even most of the stone steps were under water. With a simple measuring tape, we found out that the accessway was under 15 feet of water. The pilot guessed that, at low tide, it was under seven feet of water. The pilots figured that our client had used a small boat, to cross the moat, but then Tami thought about something which many old architects had included in castle design. Escape tunnels. Tami had become something of an expert, on caves, caverns, and tunnels, during our time, as investigators. She had read report after report, on how other explorers had found these "hidden passages", tucked away, where no one would find them. She wondered why this castle should be any different. Although it would take us two, full, days of searching, we found the entrance in an out-cropping of rock, which, as Tami noticed, was about the same color as that of the castle rock. Coincidence? The entrance was blocked by one of those age-old, "fail-safe", locks. The kind where stones must be moved, at the same time, for an opening to appear. Whomever designed this place, however, had gone one, further, step. As Tami would figure out, this door had four key-stones, instead of two. Tami took the two, on the right, while I took the two, on the left. When we pushed, together, a section, of the rock face, silently slid back, inside, then to the right. Wouldn't you just know it. neither the stairs, nor the passage way, would have electric lights. This, from a castle, which had been built as little as 800 years ago. Just beyond the stairs, the pilots found a lift, which was more than large enough to carry all of us. It was hand-powered, but better than risking those stairs. What Tami, and the pilots, noticed, before me, was how this lift shaft, and the tunnel, were carved from the solid rock. Only the entry, and the stairs, seemed to have been added. The four of us knew when we were passing under the moat, since we could hear the waves above our heads. Ironically, the air,in the tunnel, was dry, and dusty. We only knew we had reached the end of the tunnel when we came to another hand-operated lift, which rose into the dark above us. The waves sounded more distant, now. The lift rose, maybe, fifty feet, before stopping at a platform. Since the winch was directly above us, the pilot would say "All ashore whose going ashore", with a smile. At this height, though, there was more light, coming through openings in the walls. What struck us as "odd", though was how the floors, walls, and ceilings, seemed to have been carved out of the rock, just as the outside was. Only the remains, of window coverings, doors, tapestries, and ancient doors, looked to be add-on's. About three levels up, we found a terrace, also carved out of the living rock. Only a painted mosaic, or what was left of one,decorated the floor of the terrace. It was only on the tenth floor where we found evidence of recent habitation. Someone, probably our client, had laid rubber mats in the stone floor, and had some modern furniture brought in, as well. Although the furniture was made to LOOK old, it had the marks of modern, kit, furniture. Cant say much about our clients color sense either. First, the pilots, then Tami and I, found evidence that someone had used drills, and jack-hammers, to try to hang something on the walls. Whatever kind of rock this was, it seems that the tools barely made a dent in it. Whomever commissioned this place must have cared how it looked, to visitors, since most of the rooms had fireplaces, again cut right out of the stone. This place began to give a whole new definition to the term "seemless". Even the stairs were carved out of the rock. Now that we were among things, which we understood, such as the floor-padding, we began to focus on the decor more. In one closet, Tami found what might have been "standards", or flag poles. Some still had cloth attached. It was so worn, though, that the only remaining "color" was the mold. Still, Tami bagged a few, hoping that we could learn something from them. In another room, we found something, which made us laugh. In order to create the image of a fine dining room, ugly, wooden, hoists had been installed, with cross-members, which suspended crystal chandeliers, over a long, wooden, dining, table. In the natural light, of day-time, the devices looked humorous, while, when the lights were turned on, it looked disgusting. One of the pilots appearred, on some steps, and said "Come, look at this. You have to see it". When we followed the man, two flights up the stairs, we found ourselves in what was either another terrace, or a lookout post. We just couldn't decide which it was. When the pilot pointed, we followed his finger, and saw what he saw. From this height, our plane looked like a childs toy, and something which could be smashed to bits, during a tantrum. What we found truly amazing, and frightening, was how much castle was, still, above us. That, and how much lay, un-explored, around us. From the photo's the owner had sent us, we thought this place would be tall, and skinny, not tall, and wide. Once we got settled in, Tami was the first to notice that, every time we saw "ghost" lights, phantoms, or so on, it was never close-up. Every sighting we had, while on location, was at enough distance that we could see something, but never close enough to make out details. How many times, on some nights, did we chase around the castle, hunting "sounds", "lights", and so on? One good thing, about how this place was carved. even severe rain, thunder, and so on, these sounds barely penetrated the exterior of the castle. If a person were away from windows, and openings, they would never know that a storm was going on. When our "resident" spooks decided to play bashfull, Tami and I rigged up some traps, and managed to capture one, floating, glowing, "ghost". Although the man said that he was just doing his job, as were his co-workers, he insisted that even the site-staff workers had seen "real" haunts. What the man could not understand was the reason why the castle was so quiet, now that our team was here. When Tami asked "So, this place is full of spooks, until we arrive. Then, what, all the spooks take a holiday, until we leave? What do you take us for?" The man would say "Honest, until your plane showed up, this place was what you call "active"" This gave me an idea, for exposing this con. This I discussed with our pilots, then helped Tami as we packed our gear, to leave the castle. It took the pilots a few minutes to break us free of the ruts, in the mud, but, soon, we were airborn, and leaving the castle. What no one knew was that we had flight-plan, to fly two cities away, then return in other vehicles. Thankfully, Mr. Brown made a few contacts, and arranged for some military camouflauge vehicles to meet us at the airport. Our pilots took over driving, after Tami and I loaded our supplies, then began drive back, to the castle. This time, we planned to stay out of sight. Although we did not return until after midnight, we saw more of the very sights which we saw, on our first night. No floating spooks, but some candles, and glows, thats for sure. Sneaking in, including using some fiberglass boats, supplied by the military, the four of us sneaked onto the island, and made our way up the face of the castle. This is how we, finally, got "up close and personal" with some of the resident spooks. We got close enough to use thermal vision glasses on some floating candles. Problem was that thermal revealled no body heat, near the candle. A visual survey found no wires, either. When we found another, glowing, "ghost", our pilot used a silenced rifle, and rubber bullets, to see how this "ghost" would react to the sting of the rubber. Tami and I watched, through field glasses, as the shots went right through the ghost, this time. When the pilot said "Sorry, sir, I must have missed. AT this range, though..." I told him "Dont worry, you didn't miss", to which Tami said "Your shots went through that thing". The next evening, just after sun-down, there were sparks, and flares, along with other noises, then the "effects crew" ran from the castle, swam the moat, and ran some more. After they ran away, Tami directed our attention back towards the castle where, on an upper floor, standard binoculars revealled a glowing something. It appearred to be a text-book spook, and it seemed to be watching the effects team, running away. While we observed it, this "spook" seemed to move, around the castle, like a night watch-man. That night, we watched it perform the same routine, four times. By the final lap, we knew where it would be, and when. Come sun-rise, we moved back into the castle, and mapped out the "ghosts" route. In case it was a fraud, we put down some trip wires. We, then grabbed some sleep,and we rested, and ready, come early afternoon. One thing Tami and I had to admit to, and that was that military surplus rations tasted no worse, possibly even better, than the motel food we had eaten, on past assignments. That, and the fact that portions were larger. The only thing, which made Tami and I feel like children, was how we had to have our pilots tell us what the labels meant. For example: Tami thought that "Pasta with Meat Sauce" meant "Lasagna",not "Spaghetti". Ofcourse, I thought that "Poultry Slices with Garlic Enhanced Baked Flour" meant "Chicken Sticks with Garlic Bread". I was right about the Garlic Bread. "Poultry Slices" turned out to be "Chicken Breasts and Legs" "Slices" meant "Sliced from the chicken". As far as the portions went, it turned out to be very easy to fill our bellies, with just a few of the packets. The one thing Tami and I never did, while on assignment, was to talk about ghost stories. The reason was simple. Mr. Blue, and Mr. Green, both got tired of agents making false identifications, after talking of prior, or similar, cases. As the agency would learn, from experience, reminiscing, about the past, was the best way to screw up a current investigation. It seems that recalling old details caused agents to see things, where things did not exist. Worse, people tended to mis-interpret things, when comparing the current to the previous. As a result, the agency had us burn it into our skulls: Never idly compare cases. This is why, in the castle, all we did was to verify sightings, and study our assigned area's. Since the evening was unusually clear, the four of us enjoyed the sun-set, while lounging at our "stations". We stayed out of sight, though, in case anyone was watching the castle. Sure enough, right on schedule, our phantom appearred, just where it had, the night before. When it followed the same path, first myself, then Tami, sprayed around it, with spray cans. An old trick which would have exposed any projections, including lasers. All we managed to do, though, was to spray air freshener in the halls. When one of our pilots decided to stand in the phantoms way, we noticed that the phantom just floated right through the man, non-stop. The phantom registered no recognition, at all. The pilot, though, received a major chill. We did get a major break, though, when the recorded chains, creaks, and moans, recording accidentally slipped, just a bit. Problem was, after we found the embedded speakers, and pulled the wires, we expected the sounds to end. When the sounds continued, the four of us gave a collective "What the hell?" Still, we stood our ground, and tried to identify the sounds source. No matter how many wires we pulled, in an ever growing circle, the sounds seemed to continue. Sometime, during the night, one of our pilots was off, making his rounds, when we heard a combination of growls, and a human voice, cry out. Tami was the first to reach the man, yet all she could report was a great, dark, figure, and burning, red, eyes. She said she watched it take one last swipe, out of the pilot, with a huge claw, then it leapt away. The pilot was medi-vac'd out, the next morning, by the army, which suggested we, all, should leave. We decided to stay, especially to find out what it was, which had attacked the pilot. We felt we owed his family atleast that much. For the next nights watch, our pilot issued Tami and I stun-guns. This way, if anyone got shot, it would not be fatal. I just wish someone had told the spooks about that. Especially the one who came at me. For a centuries old spook, the bearded man came at me with a strength which I had not known, for many years. Although he seemed fairly solid, any blows I landed, on his form, just passed right through him. (Or, should I say, his glowing form). By contrast, every blow, he landed on me,felt VERY real, and hurt like ... When Tami arrived, and began shooting at the man, her shots went right through his body. Suddenly, the man turned from me, and asked Tami "Lass, why you be throwing those things at me? What has I dun to ye?" When Tami did not speak, but just held aim on him, the man said "Verily well. I will return when ye want to be talkin" He, then, faded away. As for me, I came out of the encounter looking like I had been through a slicer. Tami would be the first to ask "I dont understand. How was it that he could harm us, yet our weapons are useless, against him?" I would suggest "One of the "perks" of being dead?", but my humor fell on deaf ears. Her question was sound, though, even if I didn't have an answer. When our own search, of the castle, revealled some high-tech gear, in one of the lower levels, we THOUGHT we had found the source, of the "ghosts", but only until we examined the equipment. The machinery may have been plugged in, but, when touched, it was room-temperature, or "cold", as far as being in use went. This meant that the machinery was not turned on, within the last 24 hours. Although, over the next four days, each of us spotted the black "beast", with the "burning" red eyes, each time we gave chase, it just vanished, as we tried to catch up. We observed a few ghost monks, and some ghost nun's, as well, yet none responded to our inquiries. It was as if they didn't see US. When our supplies began to run low, our pilot contacted the company office, which sent us a new batch of supplies, and some GOOD news. Our other pilot was recovered enough to re-join us. We left our stock at the castle, then drove to the airport, where we found our pilot still bandaged, yet strong enough to review the in-coming shipment. When we asked, he asked us "You think this is my first, animal, attack? Why, where I come from, hunters would have just treated me, on the trail, and kept going". We had never thought to ask what part, of America, that our pilots came from. Due to the size of the shipment, the pilot had us load the containers onto Ghost Ship 1, saying he planned to air-drop the containers onto the castle island. If his aim was good enough, he planned to land the containers right on the roof of the castle. When Tami asked if it would be wise to land the heavy containers on the roof, of the centuries-old castle, the pilot reminded her that the castle was carved out of a single piece of rock. He was even willing to bet that the containers would not even scratch the rock. Once the containers were inspected, approved, and loaded into the plane, even I was amazed at how "surgically" the retired air force pilot could navigate the country-side. He brought the plane in so slow, and so low, that we could, practically, make out the details of the castles top watch point, even as we shoved the containers out the back door. Once the containers were delivered, the pilot took the plane to the local airport, and parked it out of the way. The man had the skill of a professional race driver. It amazed me that the air force would have let him go. His only response was: Even soldiers have a limited shelf-life. When we drove back to the castle, and used the underground entrance, then climbed to the tower, it seemed like it took us hours to climb the distance, but, when we reached the containers, we found the pilot had done an excellent job. There was barely a mark, of the touch-down. While Tami would go into the local villages, over the following days, and dig into the castles history, the pilots would maintain our interior base-camp, as well as provide security, while I spent my time chasing anything which moved, and trying to establish contact. I figured that, since some of the ghosts, from the original castle case, as well as some, from the light-house, had wanted to make contact, as had some, from the gaming house, TRIED to make contact, then there might be someone here, who wanted to make contact. The question was: Which one, and where to find them? When Tami returned to the castle, she brought back some most frustrating news. The castle WAS built, very long ago. In fact, all that remained, of the original record, was a document, so faded, the paper was, nearly blank. The owners name was long-since faded away. The library was, currently, trying to use lasers, and computers, to refurbish the document. As far as she could learn, the builder had surveyed the land, verified that it was not owned, by anyone, then laid claim, to it. He then left directions that, even if he did not live to see the completion, that the work continue, until the place was complete. Tami would add that it was no "accident", that the walls, floors, stairs, and so on, were so thick, and seemed to be carved out of the living rock. She had learned that the family, who built the castle believed in building "in harmony" with nature. To them, this meant that the castle would be beautiful, if it was carved out of the living stone. This would, also, add strength, to the fortifications. The bad news was that this rock is so hard, that construction took centuries, of chipping away, at the rock. Tami estimated as many as nine generations may have worked on this place. After all that time, and all that work, the last decendant, of the owner, pasted away, maybe just 20 years after construction completed. After that, due to the remote location, the first, of a series, of religions, took up residence, and the place alternated between being a convent, and being a monastery. In time, though, the castle was "lost", by church members, who, history said, were compulsive gamblers, and the castle went into private hands. Tami would add " But, what was most bizzarre was how OFTEN the land changed owners, after the church lost it." Tami compared the centuries, during which the original owner had the land, with the centuries, when the church held the title, then compared this to the decade, or less, that each, additional, private owner held the land. Tami showed me notes, from the file, showing that the church had made several attempts, to re-purchase the castle, but the owners put a price, on the sale, far beyond what any church could pay. As for our "client", it seems that, in order to secure the castle, he had researched the owners finances, and paid off the owners debts, in return for the owner signing over the castle, to our client. When I asked Tami "Does it say WHY our "client" wants this castle, so much?", a voice, behind us, said "It is not for money, brother", and we looked to see a monk standing before a group of spirits, behind us. When I asked the spirit monk "Okay, if not for the money, than for what?" The monk would say "For the status which this place would bring him", and the other spirits nodded in agreement. When Tami and I asked "What status?", the monk would say that this place was carved out of rock, centered over a power-source. "What your age calls "Ley-Lines". This is what the man wants. He thinks that he can become more powerful, if he lives here, and absorbs the power, from within". Tami would ask the natural question of "Is this why the original builder chose this land?" This is when my attacker materialized, out of thin air, saying "No, I did so because I liked the location" When Tami asked "So, why did you attack my partner?", the spirit would say "I thought you were here to drive US out". (So much for understanding, among life-forms). Thus began a drawn out conversation, about the history, of the castle, as the spirits would "fill in the blanks", for us. If the spirits were to be believed, then it would seem that the reason why the church continually vacated the castle, and returned, later, was due to invading armies, who wanted to use the castle as a "command base". Everytime there was a war on, the church would be removed from the castle, and would only return months, or even YEARS, later. It seems that this process was repeated, many times, as one army would leave, then another might come, years or decades, later. So, why did the church continually return to this place? As a monk would tell us, unlike most places, which shook, or fell apart, under the weather, or under attack, this was the first place which held its ground. When the spirits asked why WE (Tami and I, along with our pilots), were here, we agreed that we had been sent, by the current owner, to find out if the land was, really, haunted. When my now-gentlemanly attacker asked "Now that you know it IS haunted, what next?" Tami and I said it was our job to document just how many spirits were present. This is when a nun murmured "I hope you brought a LARGE pad". When Tami asked "Why?", the nun said "Honestly, we have lost count, over the centuries." Tami would take out her laptop computer, and open a fresh, flash drive. (Mr. Brown always kept us supplied with a surplus, of 64 GB flash-drives, since our investigations always seemed to run into thousands of pages, and photographs). Although Tami did her best, often working 18 hours per day, as ghosts told her of names, dates, and places, after awhile, even Tami had to get away from the task, for a full day. Although Tami promised me that the castle was not a "spirit-magnet", it was just that so many had died within these walls. One, 20 year battle, alone, brought almost 1,000 dead, while two kings vied for the hand of a maiden. Although the woman killed herself, early on, after finding out how many were dying, over her, it seems that it was years before the kings were informed, of the maidens death, then more years while the death was confirmed. Tami would tell me that she wasn't sure that even a 64 GB flash drive would be big enough too hold all of this information. While Tami took down histories, some of the spirits showed me where they had died. A few even gave details, such as the look of the sky. Our pilots even got a bit of "spirit" help, with some trespassers. People who thought it would be funny to shoot at "spooks", only to have the dead chase the living away. Mr. Brown made sure we were kept well-supplied, during the work. In the end, though, our report would document that well over 5,000 spirits inhabited the castle, and almost none of them liked the new owner, or his plan, to turn the castle into a hotel, and resort. This is why our recommendation, to the owner, was to donate the castle to the church, as a tax-deductable donation. Mr. Brown had made the mistake of bringing the owner back to the castle, to meet with us. When the spirits heard the man say "I have spent $200 million, to buy this place, and I intend to turn it into a $20 billion wonderland, and no damned spooks are going to stop me!" A moment later, the man found himself suspended, in mid-air, off a high turret, while a voice boomed, like thunder "Turn our home into a stinking tourist hole?!" When the man said "My property", the voice boomed "really?!" When the man produced his receipt, the spirit, holding him flashed a finger and, with a flame, the receipt was gone. When the man was rough-handled, to the ground, and caught his breath, he told the spooks "I will sue you, all". To this, Mr. Brown, Tami, and I just looked at one another. When the man said "You saw it! He attacked me. Thats Assault and Battery. I am pressing charges". This is when we three asked him "Against a ghost?" The man no sooner said "Against a g...", when he thought better of it. After all, HOW would one prosecute a ghost? Before he left, our client warned the ghosts "You have not heard the last of this!" Tami asked "What does that mean?" Mr. Brown said "For humans, it would mean getting a court-order, to force them to vacate the property." When Tami asked "And for ghosts?" Mr. Brown was as clueless as we were. How does one evict a ghost? In fact, how does one evict 5,000, or more, ghosts? Are there even laws about dealing with ghosts? As for the black beast, with the burning, red, eyes, a local bishop was able to exorcise this demon. Now, it was just the ghosts to deal with. Since Mr. Brown missed his flight, while trying to pursuade our client NOT to try and bring the ghosts to trial, we offered our boss a ride, back to America, aboard Ghost Ship 1. Two months later, we would learn that the rich man was in a rest-home, after trying to bring eviction charges against people who had been dead for over 800 years. It seems that, when the man told the judge that the castle was HIS property, bought and paid for, and that he wanted the law to evict the spirits, the judge decided that the man needed a rest. It would be his brother who would show the sense to donate the castle to the church. Man, what an assignment. I told Tami that I, definitely, needed a rest, myself, after this one.

THE HAUNTING PAST NON EXISTENT MYSTERY

THE HAUNTING PAST: THE NON-EXISTENT MYSTERY Tami and I were just a few cases, past the "Double Trouble" mystery, and were just wrapping up another case, when Mr. Brown brought us a "special" case. Just as Tami and I were feeling relieved to be RID of our last case, due to all of the human deceit involved, we HAD been looking forward, to the promised, short, rest, which Mr. Brown had been promising, for so long. Still, it seems that our "reputation" was beginning to preceed us. Tami, myself, and Ghost Ship One, seemed to be the only "force", in the world, which was treating "haunted" properties, and people, as serious, subject, matter. In this case, though, we were in for the most unusual case, to date. In this case, too, Mr. Brown gave us a "first", by letting the "victim" fill us in, on the case. Her name was Maria and, although one could not tell it, either by her wardrobe, nor her career choice (Seems she worked with new product development, at some corporation), Maria was, otherwise, every bit the Roman-Catholic, which she said she was. Maria's wardrobe might be "modern", but her jewelry, make-up, and so on, were classic, and, very much, within the rules, for the Roman Catholic church. It seems that she also had an apartment, and her career was on the rise. Still, she admitted that her, eventual, goal, was to find a good man, and raise a family. Now, came the problem. Although Maria had "put in the hours", studied, and EARNED her position, in industry, a shocking bit, of her past, had, recently, reared its "ugly head". Maria would say "A creature came to me, one night, and spoke of things, which only my immediate family know about. Then once the creature had my attention, it "introduced" itself, as something called a "Messenger Demon", and said its purpose was to inform me that, at a pre-specified date, my part, of some "contract", would be "due, and payable"." When Tami would ask "How do you know it was a demon, and not just some whack-job, in costume?", Maria would say "When I asked for proof, it showed me its true form. It was right out of my worst nightmares. Wings, horns, fangs, and all" By Maria's overall description, it seemed that this creature was much the same as the "Enforcer Demon", who had been assigned to make sure that the frauds had been dealt with, by human justice. When Tami asked Maria for any details, of this "contract", all that Maria could say was that the "Messenger" had said for her to prepare to put her things in order. Swell! How cryptic could a message be? After speaking to Maria, Tami and I did our usual research, but came up with all the usual answers. Thousands of legends, and lore, on a wide variety of "contracts". Even Mr. Browns ever-efficient secretary came up with nothing useful. There were just too many cross-references. Then, we made a decision. Maybe not a "good" decision, but the best we had, in this situation. Remembering which human foods the Enforcer Demon had enjoyed, most, during its last visit, too Earth, Tami and I ordered a sort-of buffet, which we, then, set up, in a warehouse (To avoid potential, prying, eyes). We, then, used a "Request for Information" spell, and were relieved at the results. Granted, the entrance was the classic form, designed to scare most mortals, into submission, what with the bright fire, and the growl, and all, but Tami and I were relieved when our "friend", the Enforcer Demon, showed up. It even kept to its end of our previous agreement. One in which the creature retained its natural form. Since the Enforcer was our guest, Tami and I took "submissive" roles, as we served the creature enough food for its too relax, and prepare to answer questions. Once the Demon had its fill, of the food, it said "Yes, I KNOW of your request I even made a point, of checking our own records, before answering your summons." When Tami said "Well, that saves time. Now, what can you tell us?" The demon would say "It is most simple, indeed. A Contract was signed, 390 years ago, which gave a mortal un-limited powers, over others, in return for a price." When Tami asked "Let me guess. The woman sold her soul, to the devil. But, HOW does this relate to Maria?" The Enforcer said "According to the record, the ancestor wanted revenge, on someone, bad enough, that the woman signed a contract which sold not just her soul, but generations, of her descendants souls, as well." When Tami asked "I thought the rule was that a person could only sell their own soul?" The Enforcer would say "Normally, you are most correct, however, the Bargainer Demon saw a chance to "make some points", with "the Boss", so the Bargainer made a deal, which would guarantee a steady supply, of souls, in the coming years". When Tami asked "Is that even legal?" the Enforcer would say "Normally, I would say not, but the Bargainer was most shrewed, in making the deal." This is when I asked "Whats the "out"." When the Enforcer would ask "What is this "out"?" Tami would say "He means that, in ALL contracts, there is an "out" clause. A clause which free's the signer from the contract." The Enforcer would say "You mean, a way to terminate the family contract, right?" When Tami would say "Right. HOW do we get Maria OUT of the contract". Although Tami and I had done some very strange things, in past cases, in order too place the dead back in peace full rest, when the Enforcer spoke of the only way, which it knew of, to end the contract, Tami and I decided that this would be too far, for each of us to go. Still, we gave the demon our thanks, for the information, then it said "Call on me, anytime. I enjoy visiting your world. But, back to business". In the next moment, it faded away. With the contract information in hand, Tami and I would make another stop, at an herbal supplies shop, before visiting the local coven. After acquiring the supplies, we travelled to the local covens "headquarters", where, instead of telling the covens leader why we had come, she asked "YOU know why we have come". When the priestess would say "We are aware." When Tami waived me forward, with the container, the priestess would say "You honor us, now I will honor you. The Enforcer was NOT correct in saying that there was only one way too break the contract." When Tami would say "I am listening", The priestess would say "The Enforcer knows only what evil allows it to know. Evil only knows evil. There is, however, an alternative, IF you are willing to face the consequences". When Tami would ask "WHAT consequences?" The priestess would say "If you follow this course, of action, you will disrupt the current time-line. The consequences are too vast to contemplate." When Tami would ask "How bad could it, possibly, be?" the priestess would say "IT could be as small as a rainy day, instead of a sunny day" When Tami asked "At worst?" The priestess would say "The two of you could either end up NOT being born, or you could end up married" When Tami took a look at me, and at my belly, I knew what she was visioning. She was visioning me to be like her uncles. Married men, who carried enough extra weight too make up a second, or third, person. When I reminded Tami that we were on assignment, and obligated to atleast TRY too help our client, Tami agreed. This is when Tami made the arrangements, with the coven, while I monitored the supplies packing, in case we ended up spending some serious time, in the past. After one case caught us off-guard, and we ended up 200 years in the past, for weeks, without even our tooth-brushes, when we returned to the present, we did not even report in, until after hot showers, and dental care. Since the priestess had suggested more time-travel, too prevent the contract, and, thereby FREE Maria, of the contract, I wanted too make sure we had what we might need. I did have too laugh at the idea, that someone had decided too place disposable batteries in the packs. I guess that the people, who designed the original packs just did not understand that radio, cell-phones, and G.P.S., were MODERN inventions. Besides, WHO would we call, centuries before the phone was invented. No, I re-designed the packs to contain, primarily, rations, and hygiene products. After the ration packs, and supplies, were ready, Tami and I were fitted with our "travel-wardrobe". This way, we would blend in with the natives. What astonished both of us was the location spell, which the priestess would use, to send us trough time. A coven elder would say that the care, being used, by the coven, was due to the "sloppy" techniques used by science agencies, on previous missions. Stupid scientists thought that all they had to do, in the past, was shown modern credentials, and they would be accepted, by people who lived before magic had given way to science. To date, eleven teams, and 35 scientists, had gone into the past, and been killed, after being condemned as "witches". This is why, not only did the coven choose the correct date, to send us to, but the Wiccans were most careful to choose an access point, which locals were known too avoid. By this assignment, Tami did not have to be reminded, to put her hair up, and pose as a boy, in other time frames. She had learned, from the case of the lighthouse, that, in the past, women were seen-and-not-heard. Still, the look, of annoyance, on the womans face, as her corsete bound her breasts in, made me want to smile. Tami said she would never get used to these items, no matter how "required" they were. Before we stepped through the time-tunnel, the priestess showed us a view, of where we would land. The coven had selected a cave, which was roomy enough for our supplies. The "tricky" part, as the Wiccans would say, was landing us at the right POINT in time. When Tami saw how difficult the task was proving, she suggested "Why not set us down a week, or two, beforehand? This way, even if the time is not exact, we can be in place, too avert the deal." When the Wiccans agreed on this, the portal was open, and this is when, too our surprise, the Enforcer demon would materialize, and ASK the Wiccans "May I accompany them?" When the priestess, surprisingly, said "Certainly", the three of us stepped through time, with very little complication. The only thing we found odd, about the tunnel, was how easy it was to pass even our supplies through the device. Both at Wiccan headquarters, and in the past, in the cave, we have to muscle the supplies across the floor. Inside the tunnel, though, it was as if the supplies rode, on a cushion, of air. It was only AFTER we arrived, in the past, that we found that the Enforcer had brought along a piece of electronics. I was about too remind the creature that, in this time, electronics do not exist, when it received a signal, and told us "We have three weeks to avert the deal. After that, time moves forward". Even worse yet, with no internet, Tami could not call up information, for us to track. According to the demon, its electronic thing could only track dates, demons, and prospects, for recruitment. This is when we decided to split into two groups. The Enforcer would take on the Bargainer, while Tami and I tried to talk the woman OUT of the contract. Over the next two weeks, though, Tami and I came to understand the reason WHY the woman had made the deal. Just because she was twenty-five years old, and not yet married, and having no children, the woman was considered an outcast, in her village. A place where girls were married off, at fourteen, and had their first child, at age fifteen. When Tami spoke too the woman, she found out WHY the woman had not yet taken a husband. It seems that the village match-makers wanted her to marry in her own "station". Having grown up, on the hard lands, of the prairie, though, the woman wanted MORE than just a farmer, for a husband. She wanted MORE from her man, and she was not about to settle for less. No matter how much her body YEARNED for a mans touch. When Tami suggested that the woman pawn the lands her parents had left to her, and move to a place, where her thoughts would be accepted, Tami had forgotten that, in THIS time period, only MEN could BUY, SELL, and PAWN. Women were property, as were children. This is when Tami worked another of her "deals". Finding a man, whom the woman trusted, but NOT "loved", Tami had the woman place her land in the mans name, then instructed the man to travel to another village, to PAWN the lands. The two would, then, split the profits: 75% for the lady, and 25%, of the man. While we were doing this, the Enforcer located the Bargainer, and had to report the creature, for manipulating humans into making deals. The Enforcer even had to step in, twice, to prevent a gross mis-carriage, of justice. In one case, two men were quarrelling, over a woman, and the Bargainer was, discreetly, doing everything possible too encourage the men to KILL one another. The Enforcer knew the RULES, and the RULES said that demons could only act, if humans ASKED for action. When the Enforcer stepped in, reminding the Bargainer of the RULES, the Bargainer backed off, and the men decided that the woman was not worth fighting over. Shortly after this, the Enforcer had to beat the Bargainer, severely, as the Bargainer tricked a woman into "public disclosure", in order to raise funds, to feed her family with. Like the Enforcer said, the RULES stated that humans must REQUEST interaction, for deals to take place. Demons were not allowed to act like sales-people. Once the Bargainer was reprimanded, the Enforcer altered events just enough so that it would seem that the woman had nothing more than a momentary, mental, lapse. "No harm, No foul" When it was time for the womans generational contract to be made, the Enforcer steered the Bargainer away from the village, and sent it off, for some "better prospects". At the womans home, Tami and I felt a sort-of "shiver", of wind, and hoped this meant that history had changed. When the Enforcer met us, back at the cave, it smiled as it said "The deed is done". With this, the three of us just waited for the portal too re-open, so we could return home. Coming back, through the portal, was the easy part. The hard part was what we found, when we tried to report in, to base. To say that we were shocked, too find the Brown Agency no-longer in existence, was one thing. Too find that it was replaced with a Dominatrix Parlor, was something else. When Tami and I returned too the coven, the priestess already had the information, which we sought. According to the covens "database", although we had saved Maria from damnation, the problem was that the Bargainer had been sent to a person, who held a grudge, against another. The Bargain was that the victims newly married wife was too be cursed to be barren. This would present a problem since, according too history, two, of the couples daughters, had left home, at early ages, and made their ways, as best they could. One had traveled East, while the other went West. These women would, eventually, be the ancestors, of both Mr. Brown, and Mr. Blue. Tami had no-sooner asked "How do we FIX this?", the Enforcer showed up, asking about the same thing. This time, the Wiccans would provide us with DETAILED directions, on what to do, and when. When we prepared too travel, again, the priestess asked the demon "WHY do you wish to use our travel methods? You have the ability, on your own" The Enforcer would admit "I like your method better. Less bumps. More comfortable" Back in the past, it turns out that the task would be even simpler than we could have hoped. When the Enforcer found the Bargainer trying to trick one child into killing another child, over some toy, while, at the same time, trying to convince a man too have sex, with his daughter, while the mother was away, the Enforcer was not-so-polite, this time. The Enforcer DRAGGED the Bargainer back to Hades, as viciously as possible, while reminding it "We ONLY recruit those who WANT our help." From the moment, when the Enforcer dragged the Bargainer away, history was changed, again. With another "puff of wind", Tami and I felt a positive change, coming over us. Although we were prepared to wait for our "travelling companion", to join us, the Enforcer sent us a "message", saying it would meet us, in the present. Back in our own time, Tami made a point of asking the priestess to verify how time had been affected. The priestess would promise that all we knew was back to normal. Returning to base, though, and submitting our report, which included that fat that Maria was free of her contract, Mr. Brown would ask "Who is this Maria, and why are you claiming that we changed her fate?" Strange that only Tami and I, alone, remembered the assignment. This is when Mr. Brown would suggest that we take that week, that we wanted. The case we had worked, now, never existed.