"Existence"
<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0><script> (function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){ (i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o), m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m) })(window,document,'script','//www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga'); ga('create', 'UA-47423994-1', 'fortunecity.ws'); ga('send', 'pageview'); </script> <center> <br> <div> <script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://ad.broadcaststation.net/ads/show_ad.php?width=728&height=90"></script> </div> </center> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#003333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="074d4c00dduajq.gif"> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="95" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 46 WIDTH="91"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="46" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="91" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Drew Beane Web Site"><U>Return to Home Page</U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I><B><U>“Existence”</U></B></I></div> <div> All Rights Reserved, Drew Beane, 2002</div> <div> A group of amateur, physical researchers discover unusual activities taking place in an old abandoned high school building built during the 1930's that serves now as a community center for a prominently large retirement community. Strange occurrences & activities were reported by night time security officers, janitors, & even some of the old towns folk who use the old building for a social meeting ground on a daily basis. People say that a beautiful, young lady, perhaps a former high school student, silently walks the halls at night, while others say that it's the spirit of the former director of the community center & heart of the community itself - the lovely Ms Erica Simpson.</div> <div> </div> <div> Student researchers launch an investigation into the unexplained activity by interviewing many of the senior citizens who frequent the community center on a daily basis, After their initial investigations, they decided to ask the college for permission to conduct an “overnight surveillance” of the building, using the latest technology available to the physical researchers. The college agrees to make the arrangements with the building management & grants the team permission, along with a very limited budget.</div> <div> </div> <div> After a week of preparation & gathering the right equipment, the four-man research group enters the building early the following Saturday morning, beginning their initial set up of the cameras & equipment. Progress is made quickly due to the skill & experience of the project coordinator, Ed Crowza. His team assistant, & sometimes pain in the ass friend Christian, who has a background in physics & particle matter (although his GPA & college professors could probably argue his credentials - if they really wanted to), came along just to disprove some of Crowza's theories, explaining that every circumstance can be scientifically rationalized. Crowza respects his friends “authoritative consultation” (if that's what it could be called) & simply tolerates his friends obsessive rationalizations. Yet, regardless of their differences in philosophical beliefs, the two have always had a mutual respect for each other. </div> <div> </div> <div> Once the set up is complete & the systems pass inspection, the four assemble briefly for a meeting. Crowza explains that Jimmy will stay behind to monitor the camera & alarm stations, while the other 3 split up, each taking a different corridor of the building & conducting a visual reconnaissance. Each person will have a radio to keep in contact with the control station, although to prevent any interference with the equipment, it's suggested that they keep the all radio traffic to a minimum. Every 15 minutes, they “check in”. </div> <div> </div> <div> The four members disburse & head immediately to their positions. As Crowza reaches the west wing of the building, he begins his patrol of the hall walking slowly, methodically taking in every detail of the corridor; the thick paint on the cinder block walls, the tarnished, doorknobs of the former classroom doors & even the water-damaged ceiling tiles hanging precariously in their aluminum frames. This place was full of history he thought to himself. He envisioned the thousands of students who walked the halls even before his birth. He thought about Erica Simpson, how she too walked these same halls hours upon hours, performing her duties as director up until her untimely death. She slipped, or so the story went, down the west wing staircase, landing directly on her neck, killing her instantaneously. Now just six months later, here he is, trying to validate reports that she still walks these hallways. </div> <bR> <div> Validate? To who? The college administrators, his friends, perhaps even himself?</div> <bR> <div> His entire life, all he ever wanted, was to prove that he <I>had</I> heard the voices coming out of the dark corner of his bedroom when he was a kid. He grew tired of being ridiculed by his father, questioned by his mother, & laughed at by his friends. He <I>had</I> heard the voices; he knew they were real. His problem, was trying to prove it to others using the credibility of an eleven-year-old boy. Now, years later, after working so hard to establish a credible name, here was his chance to prove them all wrong. He was committed now; no turning back. He was focused. He had to remain alert & attentive at all times. The last thing he needed was to let a piece of “hard evidence” as the college referred to it, slip through his fingers due to a simple mistake. </div> <bR> <div> “ Focus, remain alert, & for God's sake, pay attention!” he had told his team members. </div> <div> </div> <div> Listening to his footsteps land on the tile flooring, he noticed that they were unaligned with his own footfalls. Peculiar, he thought as he stopped walking while the footsteps continued resonating through out the hallway. “Oh shit!” he exclaimed, realizing the continuing sounds of footsteps were not his own. He turns & sees an individual, possibly an “apparition” gracefully moving towards him. His senses sharpen, his adrenaline starts to pump, & his body begins releasing perspiration. His rational thoughts start trying to examine details of the individual walking towards him. Maybe it is a ghost, just trying to scare him. Studies have shown that “ghosts” don't hurt anyone. Ghosts are nothing more than emotional energy trapped within space & time repeating the same events in which the pre mortem existence expended the most amount of energy. Could this be a ghost, or is it a “free spirit?” Becoming alarmed, yet opened for explanations, he slowly begins to walk to meet whatever it is that's walking towards him. His stomach tightens with nervous anticipation.</div> <div> </div> <div> En route, Crowza glances up towards the ceiling, noting the small, red, recording light was on, & hoping that Jimmy is paying attention to the monitor. This could be important, & Crowza wanted to make sure that his crew was paying attention. At any rate, they would at the least, have it on videotape as well. </div> <bR> <div> After realizing that the “ghost” was beginning to take on a remarkable number of human characteristics, Crowza felt his tension ease somewhat. Walking up to what undoubtedly resembled a man, he immediately began questioning him. “Can I help you?” </div> <bR> <div> “No, but I'm sure I can help you though.” The man replies with a grim smile. </div> <bR> <div> “Excuse me?” Crowza returns. “ Are you with the directors office or the school?”</div> <bR> <div> “There's no time for this Mr. Crowza. We've got work to do.” Came the reply, as the man continued walking right past him. Crowza, startled that the man called him by name replies, “How the hell did you know my name? Who are you with; the school, the center, the…?” </div> <div> ”Chris, Chris Simms” the man interrupted. “Let's just say that I work here. There's not a lot that goes on here that I don't know about” he continued “especially when your institution makes a big deal about bringing in a group of their own students. So, consider me here to help Mr. Crowza; think of me as your <I>tour guide</I> for the evening.” </div> <bR> <div> Part III</div> <bR> <div> David Andrews was a smart guy! At 24, his hair was already becoming a lighter shade of blonde - the preceding signs of gray hair, as he called it. Standing at 5' 8”, with deep blue eyes, he was a man that any mother would be proud of. Even he was proud himself. He had learned so much these last 6 years at college, he considered himself one of those guys who “know a little about a lot of things”. Throughout high school he always had an interest in history. While his friends were off working on their cars, installing the latest car stereo systems which usually cost more than the cars themselves, he could always be found at his home attempting to read many different history books at once. Soon afterwards, his reading interests became increasingly broadened, including books on mathematics, sociology, & world religions. One of the books he read was a book over eleven hundred pages long, discussing the differences between eastern & western philosophies. He was in essence, the “nerd” of his graduating class. </div> <bR> <div> Regardless of the stigma that had been attached, he had tremendous persuasive abilities over people. He wasn't just any, ordinary nerd. He could communicate with people, on many different levels. No matter what the conversation was about, he could always recall some minute historical fact that was significant to the current discussion. He loved to talk! By all his traits, he should have been a teacher, but after a long & restless summer between high school & college, he decided to pursue a career in communications. During his first four years, he learned a lot about the mass media & their persuasive influence over the public. But shortly after his introduction to the field, he had discovered his niche. </div> <div> </div> <div> He wanted to be a journalist. However, he didn't want to write long, boring columns about current political affairs or about the downsizing within corporate America. He wanted to educate people, perhaps even enlighten them! He wanted to offer a sort of educational editorial to people with the same interests as he had, which included a wide variety of topics. He wrote an article for the school newspaper once entitled “<I>Death: A Starting Point for New Life”</I>, which outlined several similarities of Christianity, Buddhism, & some other eastern religions, all on the subject of life after death. </div> <div> This very article caught the eye of an upcoming psychology major, Ed Crowza. </div> <div> </div> <div> David & Ed had became good friends over the course of the last few years, although their friendship was based in part on the many debates the two had conducted; Crowza was convinced that life after death consisted of the emotional/spiritual energies still possessing the power of “free will” &having the option to “stick around” after death or move on. Andrews on the other hand, was evenly convinced that the spirit automatically succumbs to a higher power; depending upon which religion you practiced. Their debates earned them an equally shared amount of respect for each other. But then Crowza offered to prove once & for all that his theory was correct. Now, two weeks later, Andrews has found himself walking the halls of an old high school, searching for anything that could even remotely resemble a ghost. </div> <div> </div> <div> Crowza had always told him that ghosts were energies fastened to a particular place in a particular time; they were stuck & could therefore never harm you. At the most, they might scare you, but they certainly weren't the silhouettes of humans, with a white bed sheets over their heads like David had always suggested. On the other hand though, according to Ed, free spirits or discarnate entities could move from place to place, endeavoring to finish some unfinished business left from a former life. Generally speaking though, “free spirits” have never been documented to harm anyone. </div> <bR> <div> Poltergeists were the ones Crowza had warned against. It usually wasn't in a direct manner that you would be injured though. Injury occurred from inanimate objects that were made animate by some unseen force; kind of like an invisible person picking up & throwing a flower vase at you. Those were the ones David had to fear. </div> <bR> <div> Did he really have anything to be afraid of though? After all, he never believed in the supernatural phenomena that had brought him here tonight anyway. He was going through the motions so to speak, just trying to help out his friend although he adamantly disagreed with his friend's theories. He'd just do his job, walk around his sector of the building until Ed called wrap up, then go home & get some badly needed sleep. Turning down the long hallway beside the old auditorium, he figured at best he could get home by eight o'clock, & in bed & asleep by eight o'five. </div> <bR> <div> Looking up, he noticed the thermo-camera recording the temperature changes within its view. By changing temperatures into color schemes, a person could tell whether it was cool in an area by blue colors, or hot using the red colors of the display. As he passed the TC unit, he noticed a glare on the windows at the end of the hall. “Probably just a passing car” he said aloud, almost trying to convince himself if not someone else. The glare remained stationary however, & it almost seemed like it was gaining intensity - growing brighter. </div> <bR> <div> “What the hell?” he mumbled.</div> <bR> <div> “Moonlight.” He said, with the resolve that one has when solving a simple equation. As he moved closer though, fixing his gaze on the glare, which looked to be growing not only brighter, but larger in size as well. </div> <bR> <div> It was completely captivating; He couldn't take his eyes off of it. </div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Part IV</div> <bR> <div> Christian walked silently around a corner of the auditorium, leading into the main foyer on the second floor of the building. As he walked, he could feel the fatigue setting into his legs, from all the excessive walking he had done thus far. He wasn't cut out for this type of punishment, he had told himself numerous times this evening. What he needed was a hot, cup of coffee & maybe half a box of Krispy Kream doughnuts & he'd be revived. But this certainly was not the case due to the fact that he'd have to leave his post, & would end up missing out on the chance to prove his old friend Crowza wrong. That was his motivating factor; the opportunity to prove once & for all that there were no such things as ghosts. Science did not allow for it, therefore it could not, & would not exist! </div> <bR> <div> Not that he didn't like Crowza though. To the contrary, he respected everything about the man; his looks, & his uncanny ability to remember certain details instantaneously without hardly any prompting. Most of all though, he admired Crowza's determination to challenge completely overwhelming odds, even when he knew he would lose, & still give a one hundred & ten percent committed effort. That said it all about him. Crowza had been a role model for Christian as they were growing up together; almost to the point of being an older brother. </div> <bR> <div> They had known each other since middle school; even had class together. In a lot of ways, they were alike, but as they both got older, their opinions & philosophies began to change. While Crowza became more open-minded, Christian went to the opposite extreme. He became a rigid, structured, narrow-minded, student with a scientifically acceptable rationalization for everything that could be examined using scientific principles. Christian would always tell Crowza that if he became too open-minded, then his damn brain was going to fall out. Nevertheless, regardless of how many arguments, debates, or disagreements they had, they had still always counted on each other to help out when a situation arose. Christian remembered that all to well.</div> <bR> <div> When they were still in high school, Christian was standing in the lunch line one afternoon when Derrick McConely made it appoint to “conveniently” bump into Christian, knocking his own lunch tray out of his hand, spilling his food everywhere. McConely accused Christian of not watching where his “fat-ass” was going & threatened to seek retribution there in front of everyone in the cafeteria. The only thing that Christian's science was going to be able to do for him at that time, was to rationalize an escape route out of the lunchroom, & head straight to the administrations office. By this time, Derrick was in Christians face, poking him in the chest with his finger, asking him if he was just going to set there & let him talk trash to him. Christian took a tight grip of his tray & flipped it up into McConely's face, covering him with the fine flavored cuisine that the school cooks had prepared. Then, Christian ran like hell out of the cafeteria, to the amusement of the other students who knew that he wasn't going to last the rest of the day without facing Derrick's wrath.</div> <bR> <div> McConely got up & began sprinting to the cafeteria doors. Just as he approached the exit, the heavy, oak, door swung out to meet him, introducing itself to Derrick's forehead. McConely immediately hit the floor on his back, looking up to see Ed Crowza standing over him. The last thing he saw before he went unconscious was Christian leaning over top of him saying “Yeah bitch! Told ya to leave my sandwich alone!”</div> <bR> <div> The good old days! Crowza had always been there for Christian, & now perhaps it was Christians turn to be there for Crowza; even if it meant tolerating his wild notions, theories, & his demands to walk in circles searching for things that weren't there; searching for things that didn't even exist. “This must be Crowza's way of trying to help me to lose weight” he mused loudly. “Fat guy working out, by looking for ghosts! Yeah, that's believable. I guess that'd explain how I could make all those inches just “disappear”!” He chuckled out loud, at the amusement he was providing for himself. After all, he needed some type of amusement; he was the only one up here. The other three were downstairs.</div> <bR> <div> Something caught his eye; something in the glass window of the auditorium doorway. He looked & saw only a small, reflective light bouncing off of the double paned window. He remembered that the auditorium had entrances on both the first & second floors of the building. Maybe Crowza or David was inside the auditorium, & their flashlight was casting a reflection on the glass. Walking over to the window to take a look, he suddenly felt a chill in the air; almost like someone had opened up a door to the outside. “That's weird” he said as his body shivered momentarily. He then realized that wasn't an acceptable explanation considering the fact that the outside perimeter doors are all on the first floor. As he approached the doorway, he looked through the window seeing that the auditorium was covered in darkness. No flashlight, no overheads, nothing! Standing at the doorway, he then noticed the soft, cool breeze, blowing gently through the hallway. His body stiffened, & he slowly began to turn around. </div> <bR> <div> He couldn't explain what he saw! He tried to scream, but nothing came out.</div> <bR> <div> </div> <div> Part V</div> <bR> <div> The passages & hallways grew darker with every step toward the interior of the building. Crowza & his newly, self-appointed tour guide, Chris Simms, had been patrolling the halls in the east wing of the building for the last hour. Everything thus far had gone as planned. No systems malfunctioning, nobody bailing out of their posts, & no one falling asleep. After the fourth radio “check in” by Christian, David, & Jimmy, Crowza knew that he had the best team available; although David & Christian were still die-hard skeptics. The only real disappointment they had experienced so far, was the low levels of activity; paranormal activity. The geiger counters & TC units had been quite all evening, which was Crowza's main source of irritation. He had waited, planned, & executed this entire surveillance, & so far the only thing he had to show for it was a hefty bill that would be submitted to the college. So far, Crowza had nothing; no ghosts, no video, <I>no proof. </I>He continued walking down the hall, with Simms several paces behind.</div> <bR> <div> “So why are you here?” Crowza asked, trying to find out more about his partner. “I'm here to help you Mr. Crowza.” The man replied. Crowza continued, “Help me with what?” “Your search” Simms answered. Ed looked at him with a quizzical look. “Mr. Crowza,” Simms said exasperated, “I believe your visit tonight was prompted by a young woman by the name of Simpson. She died here, & now allegedly walks these halls. You & your team, I presume, are hear to prove the existence of a “parallel universe” coinciding with our three dimensional reality.” Crowza was impressed; enough to stop & turn toward the man who was slowly walking behind him. “That's pretty good” Crowza said. “You seem to know quit a bit that goes on around here don't you?” he continued. Simms responded, “I do indeed, which is why I think that I could be of some service to your team this evening.” “Service? In what way?” Crowza inquired. “To prepare you for what you may, or may not, see.” Chris answered. Ed began to ask another question. “What do you mean by…”</div> <bR> <div> Simms interrupted, “Mr. Crowza, this woman your looking for, do you know anything about her?” Crowza shook his head, “Not really”. “Then how could you expect to find someone when you know nothing about their life; their existence?” Simms inquired. “You see, Erica's mother got divorced when Erica was very young. Her mom remarried a few years later, causing Erica to inherit a stepbrother; one that she became very close to believe it or not. He was killed during his junior year of high school here, which devastated her & when they cleaned out his locker at school, they found a picture of Erica & her brother, which she kept.” Crowza listened intently, hanging on every word Chris said. Simms continued, “When Erica got the job as Director here, she came in one morning & the locker was standing wide open. That's when it all started happening; the sightings, the voices, all the eerie stuff. Anytime the locker was seen open, it was a sign that something big was going to happen; maybe even something bad; kind of like the proverbial black cat crossing your path.” “Like a warning sign?” Crowza asked. Simms replied, “Exactly. The morning of her death, Erica's secretary told her about a man coming into the office asking about Erica. Her secretary gave her an envelope that the man had left, containing a picture of Erica & her brother.”</div> <bR> <div> “Ever since Erica passed away, the locker has remained shut.” Simms said. </div> <bR> <div> “So what happened after that?” Crowza asked. “She apparently decided to go up to the locker for some reason, taking the west wing stair case. That's when she fell.” Chris added. Crowza seemed a bit disappointed. “Ok, I don't quit get the moral of the story?” Crowza inquired. Simms, looking at Ed with a very serious expression said, “There's a story to be told behind every ghost & apparition that dwells on this planet. To find the story of the ghosts you're looking for Mr. Crowza, I think you'll need to start looking in other areas.” Simms said, then turning to continue down the hallway. “Tell me where I need to look then?” Crowza asked emphatically. Chris slowed his pace, turning back around to look at Ed. “Look around you, Mr. Crowza. Their stories are everywhere.” </div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Part VI</div> <bR> <div> Just as quickly as it appeared, it also vanished. As David moved closer towards the light, it gradually diminished until it was finally gone. “I <I>must </I>be tired!” he exclaimed. He looked through the glass to the outside, peering into the alley behind the old building. No tail lights, & no sound of an engine; what the hell was it then? Just as he turned to lean back against the wall to recollect his thoughts, a loud noise erupted through the hall to his left, bringing him back to a fully erect posture. Fear gripped his body as panic set in. The resonating boom was too loud to be just his imagination. Something had caused it, & he just wasn't sure if he was ready to find out for himself what in fact did cause it; at least not yet, & certainly not by himself. He grasped the radio in his hand as if it were a weapon, ready to be used at any second. Then the thought occurred to him; if he didn't believe in ghosts, then why the hell should he be so scared? “They don't exist!” he repeatedly told himself out loud. </div> <bR> <bR> <div> He crouched down, leaning his back up against the wall, bringing the radio up to his mouth & pushing the transmit button. “Jimmy, you there? Come in Jimmy!” he said with a hushed tone. Jimmy responded after a few seconds, which seemed an eternity to David. “Whattup homie?” Jimmy asked, paying no attention to David's tone. “Jimmy, I've got a situation in the south hall. I saw a light from the outside, then an explosion or something just down the hall from my current position. Do you copy?” Jimmy's, whose job had been pretty easy thus far this evening, had heard the silence break abruptly. His heart began to beat faster! He glanced quickly at the monitors in front of him, looking for any activity on the screen. Nothing! He grabbed the radio to respond. “David, I've got nothing at all on the monitors! Tell me where exactly you're at, & I will meet you there.” </div> <div> David responded, “Get Crowza or Christian to meet me directly behind the auditorium, & make it fast!”</div> <div> </div> <div> Jimmy switched his radio to channel three, Crowza's channel. Almost as soon as the radio found the frequency, a loud blast of static came across the speaker, deafening his right ear momentarily. “Crowza, do you copy?” he asked. No response. Crowza must be in an area of the building that had too much electrical interference. Jimmy glanced back at the monitor screen & still saw nothing. He flipped the radio channel back to channel two. “David, you still with me?” he asked. Jimmy stood up & began running through the corridor, not waiting for David's response. David replied, “Yeah, I'm going to check it out. It sounds like someone has entered the building.” Jimmy heard the message & quickened his pace. If someone did enter the building, he didn't want David confronting the person alone; if it was a person. What if Crowza was right? What if this place did have ghosts, apparitions, or whatever the hell he called them?</div> <bR> <div> “David, wait for me!” Jimmy exclaimed. “Don't be stupid!” he continued. </div> <bR> <div> David, felt a slight bit of reassurance. After hearing that Jimmy was in fact on his way down, he was able to fight off the remaining fear that gripped his body. He looked around the corner, peering down the hall resembling a black, endless, abyss. That's when he saw the light floating softly over the cinder block at the end of the hall. Its source seemed to be radiating from the adjacent corridor at the end of the dark hallway. David ducked back around the corner, swallowing hard. He knew that Jimmy would be arriving within a matter of minutes, knowledge that only served to give him more courage. Or did it? If Jimmy took the easiest, & quickest route to David's position, Jimmy would come up from behind the light source, whatever the source was. Jimmy & David both would be isolated, with the light separating the two of them. “Damn it Crowza! Where the hell are you?” he asked to no one in particular. Just then he thought of Christian. </div> <bR> <div> David immediately turned his radio to channel one, pressing the talk button as hard as he could. “Christian, come in!” he shouted into the radio. Static emanated from the hand held device, telling him that Christian was out of range also. Where in the hell could they be, he thought to himself? No time to figure it out; he'd be sure to rip them both a new ass after this was all over. For now though, he had to worry about the brilliant light that he had seen moving around the corner, at the end of the adjacent hall. He knew it was headed straight down the long, passage way, directly toward his position. Two options now, he thought. Either he ran now, getting himself far enough away from the light, or he took off down the hall running toward it, meeting it head on. Jimmy should be coming around the same corner the light had been traveling, any second now. </div> <bR> <div> David took a deep breath, & listened carefully. </div> <bR> <div> He heard the footsteps coming down the hall toward him. David leaned against the wall, drawing on every ounce of courage & strength he had within. He closed his eyes as if saying a silent prayer. With the radio in hand, he quickly turned the corner with his head tucked & his shoulder lowered, running headlong into the adjacent corridor where he had just seen the light. Hoping to alarm the ghost, intruder, or whatever it may have been, David yelled at the top of his lungs which served to scare himself more than he thought it would scare anyone else. He was halfway down the hall when he noticed the immense blackness that had surrounded him. There was no light. He came to a dead stop, trying to focus his eyes in the dark antechamber. He turned to look back from where he had came, when he was struck by an unseen object knocking him to the ground. </div> <div> </div> <div> His last conscious action, was hearing the footsteps walking around him.</div> <bR> <div> Part VII</div> <bR> <div> Christian's fear was apparent due to the expression on his face. It was her, Erica Simpson, standing several feet behind him. He had seen her picture numerous times this past week, noticing the long, blonde hair & the hazel eyes. She didn't look like a ghost, though. To the contrary, she looked quit alive to be totally honest. This is impossible he thought. She was dead, or so he was told. Nevertheless, there she stood right in front of him. She didn't have the transparency, nor the illumination around her like Crowza had suggested there might be; but she did have a pale color to her, almost like a yellowish tint. He didn't know whether to run or stay where he was. He had to think of an alternate plan, since his legs weren't willing to cooperate with his voluntary commands. He had an idea. “Well hey there, babe! Wassup?” he said, trying not to allow his fear to be so obvious. His suspense was building. He could feel his legs finally starting to respond to the instructions his brain had sent to them seconds ago. “So ah, nice tan. Is it natural?”</div> <bR> <div> The female stood looking at him for a moment, wearing a condescending smile. She then began walking directly toward. Christian's knees buckled inward, while his body began to tremble involuntarily. She walked up to him, leaning into his left ear. He shuddered as he felt the cool air across his neck, noticing that she had no breath. The tingling sensation that he felt, reminded him of ice touching the skin. She whispered seductively into his ear. “Did you find what you've been looking for?” </div> <bR> <div> Finally, the nerves in his body were able to deliver the messages from his brain to his leg muscles, which instantly responded. While yelling at the top of his lungs, his legs carried him as fast as they could, taking him into the east corridor, which would lead him directly to the south staircase. He didn't bother to look over his shoulder; he was too scared to actually. He came to the staircase doorway, slamming it open as if he were trying to escape a burning building. He raced down the stairs, stopping at the lower landing for just a second only to catch his breath, before continuing his escape. As he entered into the darkened, main hallway, he was hit from the side by some unseen force, knocking him to the ground. As he laid there for a few seconds, he tried to focus his vision, which was blurred either from the force of the impact or just the lack of lighting. He felt completely disoriented, & for the moment was unable to move. Finally rolling over onto his side, he realized he must have been hit pretty hard, because he didn't see just one figure, but two, looming portentously over top of him standing in the exit doorway. He could have sworn he saw a gun. He lowered his head & fell unconscious. </div> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> * * *</div> <bR> <div> David laid sprawled out on the floor, waking to the sounds of footsteps & voices around him. “Unit twelve to dispatch” he heard a voice call out. A screeching sound followed, interrupted by another voice. “Dispatch! Go ahead unit twelve.” exclaimed another voice. “Dispatch, unit twelve requesting backup at the Metro Community Center. I have an intruder in custody & require assistance to search the premises for other possible intruders. Do you copy?” “Copy that. I'm dispatching two other units to your locations unit twelve. E.T.A., 10 minutes” </div> <bR> <div> Officer Greg Casto looked down at the man on the ground, & saw him beginning to regain consciousness. A stout man, with broad shoulders, thick chest, & at 47 years old, he looked to be more of a professional weight lifter than a police officer. He certainly didn't look his age. He was patrolling just three blocks away from the community center this evening when he received a call from dispatch, reporting mysterious lights coming from inside the building. He was advised of a possible breaking & entering & therefore should proceed with caution. When he pulled up to the back door, he noticed a light on the window that seemed to come from the inside. A flashlight, he had thought, which only meant that someone <I>was</I> in the building. He immediately called his old friend Phil, who also just happened to work at the community center as a janitor. Phil, living just down the street, rushed up to meet Casto who had just parked his cruiser across the street to avoid detection. </div> <bR> <div> Once Phil arrived, he unlocked the back door for Casto, who went inside with his Glock, forty-caliber, pistol drawn & ready in one hand, & his flashlight navigating the way in the other hand. Once inside, Casto told Phil to hold the door so as not to make any noises. Phil, forgot & let the door slam shut. The veteran officer rolled his eyes when he realized that he had just lost his element of surprise. If nothing else, he could at least sneak up from behind on the suspect & surprise him that way. As he turned into the south hall, he heard whispering then the static that follows a radio transmission. Great, there's more than one, he thought to himself. He leveled his pistol at the end of the corridor, waiting for a visual on the suspect. </div> <div> </div> <div> At the last minute, he turned his flashlight off, not wanting to reveal his approach. He heard some shuffling, just around the corner. He stepped back into a recessed doorframe, listening to see if he could hear any activity. Just then, he heard a loud yell, followed by heavy footsteps, running right past him. He waited for the suspect to pass him, when he stepped out of the recessed doorway. The suspect stopped immediately, then turned back around to face him. Casto reacted instinctively, by hitting him with a clubbing forearm, sending him down to the ground. </div> <bR> <div> By now, David was fully conscious; at least enough to notice that his hands had been cuffed behind his back. He raised up as best he could, not realizing that the officer was staring down at him. “What's your name?” Casto asked firmly. “David Andrews” was his reply, followed with a “sir” almost as an afterthought. “I'm with the State College Research Team” he continued. “We're here doing an overnight surveillance of the grounds.” Casto looked at him, studying the mans face to determine whether he was lying or not. He grabbed David's arm & helped him to his feet. As David managed to steady himself, regaining his balance, Casto called in to dispatch to verify the mans story. </div> <div> “Unit twelve to dispatch, can you verify a research team from State College, with the director of the community center?” “Copy that unit twelve. Standby for confirmation” came the reply.</div> <bR> <div> As Casto waited for confirmation of the story, he patted down David's body, searching for any weapons he might have had concealed. Routine procedures. He decided to question the young man further, to find out more information. “What exactly are you guys looking for?” he asked Andrews. David, still shaking the cobwebs from his head didn't know exactly how to give him a credible answer. “We are here to obtain visual evidence of unexplained phenomena taking place in this facility” he said with as professional of a manner as possible. “How many people are in the building right now?” Casto followed up. “Three others, besides myself “ David said. Casto continued his line of questioning. “Where are they now?” Just then the officers radio interrupted his conversation. “Dispatch to unit twelve” it shrieked. “Unit twelve. Go ahead dispatch.” Casto responded. “Unit twelve, I have the director on the phone & he confirms that four college students have been authorized to access the building this evening.” Casto listened & then asked for dispatch to notify the other units that backup was no longer necessary. “Roger unit twelve” the dispatcher replied. Almost on cue, he heard footsteps, from the end of the hall, followed by the sound of a collision. He removed his pistol from his holster instinctively, & looked back at David. “Guess that answers my question.” Casto said. </div> <bR> <div> The officer walked up to David, replacing his weapon momentarily, & turned David around, removing the cuffs from Andrews wrists. Casto walked to the end of the south hall, removing his weapon once again while Andrews kept close behind him, to investigate the commotion heard just seconds before. As officer Casto & David stood at the corner, they looked down at both bodies laying on the floor unconscious. David recognized them both; Jimmy & Christian. </div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Part VIII</div> <div> </div> <div> Chris & Ed made their way into the west wing staircase. The front windows were large enough to allow sunlight to illuminate the entire foyer, during the day at least; Crowza & Simms unfortunately had to rely upon overhead, fluorescent lights tonight. Fatigue had set in on Crowza, although he wouldn't allow himself to rest in one place for any length of time, due to the fact that he might miss being in “the right place at the right time” to witness an extraordinary event take place. The two began to ascend the staircase, when Crowza's radio suddenly bellowed out a loud sound of static, causing him to stop on the staircase. He took the radio & tried to call Jimmy, getting no response other than an ear full of static. He figured he was out of range, especially considering the tons of steel & brick that currently surrounded him. Christian should be on the second floor anyway, so maybe he'd run into him; hopefully, Christian wasn't asleep off in some corner which was likely.</div> <div> </div> <div> Crowza stood just near the landing of the staircase. He turned to look at Chris as he ascended the steps. “You we're talking about the locker that Erica's brother had. Where is it located at in the building?” Crowza asked. “Over in the north wing; uhm, number 476 I believe. Why, what's up?” Simms responded. Crowza told him that he wanted to go see the actual locker itself, in hopes that he might uncover some minute detail that had been over looked. Crowza said, “So let me get this straight. There's not one, but two ghosts, right?” “Mr. Crowza, there's more than we could ever begin to count.” Simms replied. Crowza ignored the rhetorical comment. “Ok, I know that, but in this building you said that there was Erica's brother & then Erica herself. If her brother had a connection to the locker, then it's possible that Erica also had a connection to it, at least through her brother; & that's what I want to find out.” Crowza changed his radio to channel one, to summon Christian. He raised the radio to his mouth, but before he could even speak, he heard a scream resonating from the upstairs. Alarmed, he squeezed the transmit button & called for Christian. The only response he received was static, telling him that communication with his friend was severed; at least for the time being. Once Crowza realized that he couldn't call Christian on the radio, he & Simms both raced up the remaining flight of stairs to the second floor. Just inside the east corridor, they stopped to look around. A door at the end of the hall closed forcefully, sending a thunderous echo throughout the passage, signaling that someone or something had just entered the south staircase. </div> <bR> <div> “Shouldn't we check it out?” Simms asked, looking down the darkened hall. Crowza nodded confirmation, although his thoughts were certainly not on the door of the staircase. “It was probably Christian. You go check it out; I'm going to the locker.” Crowza said. “What for? Simms asked. “I want proof that she's still here. I think I can find it at the locker. Find Christian, & have him meet me there. In the meantime, tell the others to keep a look out for her brother.” Chris acknowledged Crowza's direction with a simple nod. As Crowza turned to walk away, Simms called out, “Ed, make sure you know what you're getting yourself into. Don't be so open minded that your damn brain falls out!” “I know Chris. Christian told me the very same thing.” Crowza replied. He then turned & walked down the labyrinth, hoping he would find what he was looking for; proof!</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> * *</div> <div> </div> <div> Chris began walking down the hallway by the auditorium. As he walked by the rear door of the auditorium, he noticed the stage illuminated with many different shades of light from the ceiling. Curious, he pulled the handle, opening the door to the inside. He walked through the tunnel that was routed underneath the balcony seats. As he stepped out of the tunnel into the main aisle, he glanced down at the stage wandering who or what, in fact could have turned on the lights. The others on the team wouldn't be in here he thought. That meant that only one other person could be responsible for it. Just then he heard movement over his right shoulder. He turned, & noticed her setting there in a seat, almost as if she had been waiting for someone to arrive.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> * * *</div> <bR> <div> Jimmy & Christian both faded back into consciousness. Jimmy looked up & saw David standing beside a man, who looked to be a police officer. With a sense of relief, Jimmy strolled over to David. He asked, “What the hell was going on?” David replied, “My “ghost” turned out to be a cop. Thank God Crowza wasn't here.” Officer Casto spoke up asking David if Jimmy was one of his team members. David shook his head yes, & turned his attention back to Jimmy who was looking at Christian still shaking off the effects of the collision. Christian approached them with a weary look in his eye. The others could tell something wasn't right, & so they waited for Christian to initiate the inevitable conversation. Jimmy looked at Christian, asking if he was all right. With a mumbled “hmmph” & a shake of his head, he turned back away looking into the south staircase foyer. He had been hit pretty hard; he tried to remember the details of what had just happened to him, but due to the headache beginning to throb in his left temple, he couldn't be positively sure. </div> <bR> <div> “Why are you down here?” Jimmy asked Christian, holding his own head with the palm of his left hand. “I came down here to check on you guys”, was his response, “since I couldn't make radio contact with either of you.” “Why were you running?” Officer Casto questioned. “I thought maybe they were in trouble, & just wanted to make sure everything was all right” was his reply. The officer thought Christian was hiding something, & just didn't want to reveal his thoughts to his friends. , “Don't you guys think it's odd, that all three of us ended up right here in this very spot coincidentally?” he asked. “I mean com'mon, we we're all in our own section, & then simultaneously “collided” here at the very same moment.” Jimmy looked back at David. “He's got a point.” David spoke up, “Ok, so where's Crowza?” Jimmy checked his radio. It had been busted due to the impact of his collision with Christian. David & Christian's radios couldn't seem to pick up Crowza's channel. </div> <bR> <div> Casto asked, “Do you know if he is still in the building?” “Of course he is,” David replied, “why wouldn't he be?” The officer didn't feel like getting into a philosophical debate with him at this time. “You guys wait outside. I'm going to call & have some other officers come in so we can search the building.” Jimmy didn't understand. “Why, are we in danger?” he asked. “No, but I think your friend is.” came the reply from Casto. “What makes you think that?” David asked. “I think this man here has information that he's not sharing with the rest of you; why don't you ask him? Casto said, nodding towards Christian. Casto turned to start into the south side stair case when Christian yelled at him. “You've seen her haven't you?” he asked. David & Jimmy just stood there, watching the exchange. The officer turned around slowly, holding the door open as he spoke,“She was my daughter; of course I've seen her” was the reply.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>* * *</B></div> <bR> <div> Crowza walked slowly around the corner of the north hall. He had been scanning the locker numbers on each side of the wall, moving his head in a back & forth motion. He was looking for the locker that had belonged to Erica's brother; hell, it just might still belong to him even now. As he rounded the corner, he immediately looked further down the hall to see if he could recognize any locker, with its door standing open. He saw nothing; just locker after locker, every fourth locker having a different color. He continued down the hall, until he came to a locker with a cross, one that looked to have been drawn with a big, magic, marker. He glanced at the number; 476. “I'll choose door number three, Monty!” he said, amusing him self while he pulled the locker open. As he looked inside, he noticed the locker was empty. It was then that he realized that his heart had been racing. </div> <bR> <div> He searched the inside of the locker, using his hand to feel for anything that may not have been visible. On the top shelf, he felt a piece of paper that had been wadded up & thrown inside. He unfolded it, expecting to see something of valued importance. He flipped it over & over, scanning the surface for any type of legible writing. The piece of paper was blank. “Damn!” he said. He threw the paper to the ground, in an attempt to vent his anger that had suddenly built up inside of him. He looked inside once again, hoping to see something that he had not noticed at first glance. Still nothing. He squatted down, trying to think of what significance this locker would have, correlating to Erica & her brother. His disappointment became visible; it also became anger. He had led himself to believe in something that didn't exist after all. Contrary to all the evidence that he had provided, although circumstantial, he had convinced himself in the reality of this phenomena. Now, there he was, at the “heart” of the phenomena, admitting to himself that it was just another legend, with no credible evidence. He would have to tell the college administrators that it was just another folk tale, made up by the towns people themselves, & that the story was not valid. He hated to imagine having to stand in front of them once again, telling them that his theories proved incorrect. He had to finally admit defeat.</div> <bR> <div> As he stood up, he gently closed the locker. As it latched shut, he looked to his left noticing an object protruding out of the wall. He glanced to his left. It was a locker! Startled, he quickly walked up to the locker. His heart began to beat faster, as his walk gradually turned into a light jog. As he approached, he saw the number listed on the outside: 429. That's strange, he thought, noting that Chris must have been off by forty-seven lockers. As his hand lightly touched the front side of the locker, it immediately swung shut with such a force, it sounded as if a shotgun had been discharged. He stood in front of the locker, facing it, starring at the handle. He tried to open it, but the latch must have been jammed. It wouldn't budge. He thought quietly to himself maybe he should get one of the others up here to help him open it. He tried his radio, but the static was still too prevalent. Crowza knew that Christian should be on his way to meet him, if Chris did indeed find Christian. He hesitantly began walking away from the locker, deciding to go & meet Christian, of all people, knowing that Christian wouldn't believe it unless he saw it for his self. </div> <bR> <div> As he walked away, he heard a low, creaking sound; as if one of the lockers had opened up. He turned to look over his right shoulder. The locker had opened once again, by itself. He couldn't resist the temptation. He turned & approached the locker one more time, this time being careful not to touch the door. He looked inside & noticed something laying on the top shelf; a piece of paper. He cautiously took his hand & reached inside the locker, ready to remove his arm at seconds notice, & felt for the paper. He slid it out into the light, & glanced at it. It certainly wasn't a piece of trash, although it didn't have any writing on it. His face bore the shade of a pale skin tone, realizing what it was he was looking at. It was a picture. He looked up realizing what was happening. “Don't be so open-minded that your damn brains fall out” he had been told. He dropped the picture to the ground, & began running down the long passage way. The picture landed softly on the tile floor, with the image of a young man & woman embracing each other & smiling lively at the camera. The image was one that Crowza had seen all week long. It was of Erica. Standing beside her in the picture, was her step brother; Chris Simms.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> </div> <bR> <bR> <div> Part IX</div> <div> “You scared me.” Simms told Erica, with a sarcastic smile. He walked over to where she was seated, & leaned on the arm of a nearby seat. Erica sat there, staring at the stage; Chris could tell her thoughts were wondering. He too turned his head toward the stage, trying to see what it was that she was staring at. “You know he's here don't you?” he said, almost as if he didn't want her to hear him ask the question. “I know” she replied, with a matter of fact tone; “he's getting closer; I can sense it” she continued. “Woman's intuition?” Simms asked jokingly. She glanced over at him, casting a grin at his humor. “Why don't you want him here?” Chris asked. “Why?” She asked, as if the question was absurd. Answering her own question, she continued, “He never wanted anything to do with me when I was younger; hell, when I was alive. So now he thinks that he's going to ask my forgiveness from the grave? He's the one who left the family. He's the one who caused mom all the grief. Not me!” “ Never been one to believe in second chances huh? Guess that's why you never got married.” Chris said. </div> <bR> <div> “Chris, he wouldn't understand; he doesn't understand. We can't change the past now,” she said. “Your right!” Chris replied, “We're just stuck reliving it.” Both of them turned away from each other, looking in opposite directions, allowing the final statement to sink in. Chris was right. They were both stuck, reliving the hell & turmoil that the two of them had faced growing up with single parents. </div> <bR> <div> Erica finally gave in to the silence. “So what about you team leader out there; what's he like?” she asked. “He knows, he believes. He just wants proof,” Chris said. “Proof that we still exist just because our bodies are drained of our essence? Sounds like a flake to me.” She stammered. “Well his friends think so at least. He's not like them though.” Chris stated. “Really? How do you know?” Erica asked. Chris thought for a second, then replied, “Because still has what everyone else has lost; faith.”</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>* * *</B></div> <bR> <div> Officer Casto made his way up the steps & into the east hallway. He started peering into every door with a window, & checking the locks on the doors that didn't have windows. He had to find Ed. It was his duty as a police officer to serve & protect. But more importantly, he had to find Erica. I was his duty as a father to let her know that he was sorry for all the mistakes he had made earlier in his life; earlier in her life. He had a hard time adjusting to the responsibilities of a family man, so he decided to join the military; which was the same as taking a job as a traveling salesman. He was gone all the time; never home with his wife & newborn daughter that ultimately lead to his wife's untimely affair with another man. She ended up divorcing him while he was still in the marines, & two years later married another man. Casto had decided to pursue a career in the military, until four years ago when he decided to come home & make amends with his daughter. That's when he joined the police department. He figured that since he couldn't watch over Erica & protect her when she was younger, then perhaps he could do that now. Erica however, still refused to have anything to do with him, saying he wanted nothing to do with her then, so why would he now.</div> <bR> <div> He was devastated when she was killed. He was granted a leave of absence from his chief although that was probably the worst thing he could have done. It gave him to much time on his hands; so he reluctantly decided to go back to work. He had always been one to dismiss notions of unexplained phenomena; that is until he began hearing reports of the strange occurrences taking place at the community center. He suddenly found himself wanting to believe now; especially now, since he was in the halls looking for Crowza & maybe perhaps even his daughter.</div> <bR> <div> He scanned the hallway, looking for any sign of life: & afterlife. He continued walking slowly past the auditorium foyer, on into the north wing of the building. He rounded the corner, noticing something in the floor. He bent down to get a closer look, before reaching to pick it up. Before his hand even touched the picture, he saw the image that it held. It was Erica, & her step brother Chris. He picked it up & starred at it momentarily, until he had let his anger had build up enough, making him drop the picture back into the floor. He hated Erica's step-father, & he didn't care much for her step-brother either. It was their fault that he never had a chance to try & rebuild a relationship with Erica. They were the ones to blame. </div> <bR> <div> Just as soon as the picture hit the floor, the lights in the hallway went out; he turned & walked back to the corner, peering into the long east hall. All the lights were out! The entire building was completely darkened. As he began to walk slowly around the corner, a locker door silently, slowly, began to swing open.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>* * *</B></div> <bR> <div> Christian, David, & Jimmy stood in the south hall behind the auditorium. Jimmy didn't like just standing around waiting; neither did David & he even said so. “We could be back at our homes, watching TV, & drinking a cold beer; instead we're stuck here looking for a damn ghost” David said, leaning up against the wall. Christian spoke up, “Don't you guys think this is all kind of strange? The way we all met here at once; then a cop shows up & has to go look for Crowza;” he said. He continued to make his point by adding, “And the fact that the cop who just happened to show up, is the father of the “ghost” that we're searching for?” Jimmy listened, then replied, “yeah it's strange. But why don't you tell us what you're hiding. You saw something upstairs didn't you?” Christian looked around before answering. “I saw her. She walked right up to me” he said with determination. “You saw the ghost?” David asked. Christian did want to answer the question, but he couldn't deny that he saw something. “I saw a person; a female. The resemblance was incredible.” Christian said. “You saw a person who looked like Erica Simpson,” David said “& got scared of a lady, & ran like hell? Damn Christian, I would have at least tried to use a line on her.” David said, chuckling under his breath while looking at Jimmy who was smiling at the insinuation. </div> <bR> <div> “I didn't get scared damn it!” Christian exclaimed. “I just came down here to find you guys so you could come back up & see for yourself. Besides,” he said hesitantly, “I tried picking her up. Didn't work.” Jimmy turned away, to keep from showing his amusement. David looked at Christian with an exaggerated smile on his face & said, “You weren't scared huh? So you must have just been running to use the bathroom, so you didn't piss yourself.” Christian ignored his insult. “I wasn't scared David”, Christian responded. “I told you I came down here to find you guys,” he continued, turning to walk away, while pulling his pants away from his leg where the wet, stained, fabric had been sticking. “Where are you going?” Jimmy asked aloud. Christian didn't bother to stop walking. He didn't turn to answer. I'm going to use the restroom” he replied.</div> <bR> <div> Part X</div> <div> Crowza ran down the west staircase, through the main foyer in front of the auditorium, & up to the control station, where Jimmy was supposed to have been located. He looked around & saw no one at all. He checked the video monitors, to see if he could locate anyone on the screen, but his attempts were unsuccessful. Where the hell were they, he thought to himself. In his short sprint from the upstairs, Crowza had just minutes to digest the information that he had obtained. His self-appointed tour guide, Chris Simms, was the step-brother of Erica Simpson, & also a ghost! He couldn't believe it. He had been walking around, talking to a ghost, for well over two hours, & he never suspected anything out of the ordinary. He knew though that he had to find the others, or they wouldn't believe his story. If nothing else, he might be able to provide video tape evidence of Chris, due to the fact that they had walked past several surveillance cameras during the night. Crowza looked around the foyer, looking for any sign of life. He knew the radio wouldn't work, he had tried it several times on the way down stairs. He stood there in the middle of the hall, pondering what to do next; what to believe next.</div> <bR> <div> A glimpse of light caught his eye, through the window of the auditorium. A shadow actually, sense the lights were out in the old amphitheater. He walked up closely to the door, peering inside. He could only see the reflection of his face in the window. He grabbed the handle of the door, pulling on it only to find out that it was locked. He turned away, stepping back into the middle of the hallway, debating what he should do next. He hadn't been able to locate Christian, Jimmy, or David & didn't know what to do next. Suddenly, all the lights went out along the hall. He froze in place, not knowing what to expect. He took a few paces forward, toward the end of the hall, when he saw the door swing open abruptly, with a bright light emanating from the doorway. He walked into the brilliant, white, light, which illuminated his body from head to toe. He had to walk, shading his eyes from the intensity of the light. He slowly walked into the auditorium, unable to see what was in front of him.</div> <bR> <div> As he walked forward, the light seemed to take shape; take a form. It was the form of a female. The light began to diminish, revealing the features of a young woman, standing at the end of the entrance tunnel. The closer that Crowza came toward her, the farther away she seemed to drift. As the intensity of the light subsided, he recognized her immediately. “So I hear you've been looking for me,” Erica said. Crowza had the combined expressions of excitement & fear upon his face. “Yeah, your step-brother told me all about you,” he said, with a sarcastic tone in his voice. “Gee, I hope it was all good things he told you,” she replied, meeting his sarcasm. Crowza was startled by an unexpected voice from behind him, turning to see that the voice was coming from inside the tunnel. “Of course it was all good. I couldn't lie about my little sister now could I?” Chris said, emerging from the tunnel. As Crowza turned back around to look back at Erica, she was gone. Chris walked up from behind Crowza, placing his hand on Ed's shoulder. His touch felt like ice, even through his clothing. “Told you that I could be of some help to you & team,” Chris whispered in his ear. “Where are my friends?” Crowza inquired. </div> <bR> <div> “Your friends are fine, Mr. Crowza” Erica said, suddenly appearing, setting on the edge of the stage. “I don't think my father would be too mean to them,” she continued. “Who's your father?” Crowza asked. “Your going to meet him real soon” Chris said, seated from a nearby seat. “So, is this all you wanted to see, if there really was life after death, Mr. Crowza?” Erica asked condescendingly. Ed stood silently, thinking of his reply. Here was his opportunity, his one chance to find out all the answers to all the questions he had ever had; & he was silent. He couldn't think of any one question; any one thing to say to her. He couldn't blow this once in a lifetime chance. “You died six months ago. How were you two able to transcend into a parallel universe?” he questioned. “Who said we went anywhere;” she replied. She stared at him momentarily to see if her point was taken. She continued, “Our existence is made up of two key elements; spiritual & physical. When we died, we just lost our physical existence, but certainly not our spiritual essence.” Crowza just stood there taking it all in. He was completely speechless. “It's kind of the same thing that happens when one of your five senses becomes impaired.” Chris said, as he moved up behind Crowza. “A person who goes blind, becomes more keenly aware through the use of his remaining four senses; usually relying on their hearing abilities which become sharpened.” Ed understood what he was saying, but still he was just having a hard time actually believing that he was standing in the midst of two ghosts. </div> <bR> <div> “Mr. Crowza, we lost our physical bodies, but that doesn't mean that we just stopped existing.” Erica said. “We didn't go anywhere. The only difference now is that people who are still “living” can't see us. It certainly doesn't mean that we're not here anymore though.” Crowza was beginning to understand what they were saying. There was no parallel universe, or alternate dimension in which dying souls passed into. That was too complicated of a theory. But what they were saying, which made perfectly good sense, was that their bodies stopped existing in the three dimensional realm, but not their spirits; their essence. Chris spoke up once again. “People think that ghosts, or spiritual entities without physical representation, can't be seen. The problem is though, that people either choose <I>not</I> to see them, or they just choose <I>not</I> to believe in them.” Chris said. </div> <bR> <div> Crowza heard a faint humming sound, coming from the back of the stage. In the shadows, he thought he saw figures of people, moving about; several people actually. As his eyes focused, he noticed the figures losing transparency & developing physical texture. There were ten, possibly fifteen others who had materialized out of thin air, on the stage directly behind Erica. Crowza then turned & noticed Chris walking down the long ramp toward the stage. Simms walked up onto the stage beside his sister & looked back at Crowza. “I told you Ed, that there are more ghosts than we could ever count.” Chris said. “They're all around you; you just have to decide whether you want to see them or not.” Simms continued. A large flashing of light slowly began to illuminate the entire stage, & the many people who were standing on it. As the brightness culminated, the faces, figures, & forms disappeared right before his eyes. He shielded his eyes from the light, until it finally faded. As it did, the fluorescent, overhead lights gradually began to come on again one by one. Crowza stood there, staring at the stage for a moment. He didn't know what to think; he didn't know what had just happened. </div> <bR> <div> Suddenly, a loud sound from the balcony echoed through the auditorium. Crowza turned & looked up to see an officer walk through the door. The police officer saw Crowza & immediately ran down the aisle toward him. “Are you Crowza?” the officer asked. “Yes sir.” Crowza said. “I'm Erica's father. Please tell me you saw her here,” he demanded. Crowza looked solemnly at Greg. “Yes, I saw her,” he said. Casto asked anxiously, “Well, where is she here? I've been looking all over for her!” Crowza looked down at the ground for a moment, then back up at Casto. “She's been right here all this time. Just make sure your eyes are open next time you look.” Crowza said as he began to walk back up the ramp to the balcony. Officer Casto stood silent for a moment, looking down at the ground, noticing the picture of Erica & Chris that was laying on the floor. He bent over & picked it up holding it in his hand staring back at Crowza as he walked up to the balcony floor. Casto just stood there, quietly beginning to weep.</div> <bR> <div> Part XI</div> <bR> <div> One week later, Crowza barged into his office, throwing down a folder on his desk. He was visibly upset & extremely disappointed. He knew that the college administrators were not going to believe his story, especially since all of their video tape had nothing on it other than long images of hallways. Christian followed in behind him, trying to offer some consolation as Ed took his seat. “Ed, those people are ignorant!” he said. “They weren't there with us that night. They didn't see the things that you & I saw.” “Christian,” Crowza interrupted, “<I>you</I> didn't see what I saw. You saw Erica by herself; you did not see however, her stepbrother, & the others who were there as well. The conflicting evidence is why the school told us to drop it.” Crowza said. Christian looked down at the ground, trying to think of what he could say next. “Ed,” Christian began to ask. “Christian,” Crowza interrupted, “forget it. Forget about it all!” he exclaimed. “Ed!” Christian persisted, “Forget about the school for a second. Did you find what you were looking for?” he asked. Crowza looked up at Christian thinking long & hard. He leaned back in his chair & pulled out the picture of Erica & Chris, looking at it for only a few seconds. He looked back up at Christian & shook his head. “Yeah,” he said with conviction. Christian smiled at him. “Then that's all you need to worry about then,” he stated. Crowza tossed the picture down onto the desk, & smiled at his friend. “You're a pain in the ass sometimes, you know that?” Ed asked. Christian just shook his head. </div> <bR> <div> “So, you ready to get something to eat?” Christian asked. Crowza stood up, looked down at the picture, then back at Christian. “Yeah, let's go,” Crowza said, walking around the desk & out of the door with Christian closing the door behind them. The picture laid on the desk.</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>