Chapter 26 - The Ghost(2)

Ren pressed a button, and the recorder started playing. They skipped a few hours, finally reaching the exact time of night when everything went silent, and only Klyd's faint breathing could be heard.

This monotone sound continued until a frown creased Ren's face. She rewound the recording a few seconds back, repeatedly pausing and playing within that particular timeframe. Each time she pressed the rewind button, the frown on her face deepened.

Calen inquired, "What is it?"

Ren was confused by his question. She looked at him, puzzled. "Can't you hear it?"

"Obviously, no," Calen replied.

"It's some sort of melody, similar to the songs of the sea, but it varies somewhat." Ren rewound the recording once more and let it play.

Turning to Calen, she asked. "What do you notice?"

Calen's eyes reflected his rapid thoughts. He took a brief pause to analyze his thoughts and then said, "His breathing ceased, but he began moving. Shit! That is the time of the abduction. If you are right, the song controlled him. But I still don't know what we are dealing with. Is it a devil?"

The recording continued, revealing that Klyd went out through the window, yanking it open and plummeting to the ocean. However, inexplicably, the window closed shut, and the room became instilled with a deathly silence.

"Someone closed the window!" Ren's eyes widened as she stared at the window while listening to the recording. It was truly closed. No one would imagine it was open at any point in time.

Calen had a grim shade on his face, as he murmured, "It was in the room all along. Klyd never noticed he had already fallen into its traps, not the other way around. Ghosty is intelligent enough to not leave the window open. It feeds off fear and paranoia. It likes the mystery of its identity."

"Uhh, Calen…"

Calen backtraced the recording once more, lost in thought. "One second, I need to think."

"Calen…"

"Keep quiet. I can't hear it."

"Calen!" Ren screamed at him.

Calen shot a glare and snapped, "What? I'm thinking–"

"We need to leave. You know the song I was talking about. Well, I can 'feel' it somewhat, and It's not coming from the recording." Ren had fear written across her face as she grabbed the recorder and stuffed it into her pocket.

Calen swallowed hard. "Is Ghosty here?"

"No. The melody is coming from another room. I think it just took someone else. Wait–it stopped. It's coming."

Her heart raced, tightening up instantly. Calen motioned silently towards the corner of the room, where ethereal wisps of mist gradually crept out, enveloping half of the space.

Instinctively, Calen covered his ears as the otherworldly hymn began to play. The song seemed to originate from the voice of a seraphic singer blessed by ancient gods. Its notes carried the waves of the ocean and the haunting allure of its unfathomable depths, ensnaring unsuspecting listeners in an eternal enchantment.

Caught off guard, Ren quickly became affected by the sound, but Calen grabbed her hand and swiftly ran out of the room before the ghost could appear.

He knew he could not go to his room as that would just leave them vulnerable to the ghost's machination. Since they knew more about the ghost, it would try to silence them, especially now that they were aware of its method.

'It attacks stealthily. I need somewhere it will never attempt to attack!'

'The hall!' Calen exclaimed in his mind.

Calen frantically dashed for the hall, dragging an unresponsive Ren along. He soon approached the hall and reduced his pace, concealing his panicked expression to avoid drawing attention to himself.

"Hey man, what's wrong with you? You are sweating a lot." A young man said to them as he walked over. He looked at Ren's dim eyes and frowned.

Calen forced a smile. "Mind your fucking business, will you?"

"My bad. My bad. I didn't think you were a bitch like that." The man retorted, cursing under his breath.

"Fuck off!" Calen scared the man off by revealing his knife and gripping it tightly.

He knew he had overreacted a bit, but it shouldn't cause an adverse reaction.

Many others had the same thought as him. The hall had become a sanctuary where their collective presence provided mutual protection. Many slept here at night, bringing their makeshift tents over.

Calen looked at Ren with an examining gaze. He wondered when the effect of the hymn would shake off. Thankfully, no one else bothered them, so he had enough time to ponder over everything, biding his time for Ren to wake up.

'Or maybe I should just kill her and blame it on the ghost. Reve might not suspect a dime.'

He dropped her by the side of the wall and held her chin. 'However, she is quite useful. Her hearing abilities are beyond comprehension. Killing her might prove detrimental to me. Hmm… this is tough.'

Suddenly, Ren's eyes flickered open. She was met with the chilling sight of Calen's sinister gaze set on her.

"What are you doing?"

Calen honestly replied, "Trying to see if killing you is worth it."

"So, what is the verdict?" Ren bravely asked. After all this while with the maniac, she didn't doubt his words at all.

Calen's lips curled into a twisted smile. "You still have your uses."

Ren shot a disgusted look. "I think that is really glad to know. Much appreciated for not killing me."

"You are welcome. I am generous, after all. Hehe," Calen smiled.

Ren bopped her head. "Truly, your acts of generosity know no bounds."

She looked around and quickly realized Calen had brought them here for safety. 'The ghost got to me. I think it sensed my presence.'

More than that, she had just unearthed something concerning. The ghost's behaviour had become erratic, no longer confined to its previous code of conduct. It no longer struck at night. It struck whenever its target was vulnerable, even in broad daylight.

Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream pierced the hall, capturing everyone's attention. All eyes turned toward the source of the commotion.

A man rushed into the hall with beading sweat on his forehead. His voice trembled with despair. "My friend is missing. I checked his room. He is not there. Everyone in Hall 5 has been taken. They are gone!"

The man wept and went to his knees, his words filled anguish. "When we were young, we had dreams of going around the world. But he got tied up by a woman in his younger years. His dreams sunk. He has children now. This was our chance to be together before he gets married."

Drawing a gun from his pocket, the man pointed it at his own head. "He was the only reason I got on this ship. I have no family other than him. Now, he is gone… I have nothing left!"

A black-haired lady approached the man and softly cajoled, "Don't do it. You can find other reasons to live."

"You don't understand. I have nothing left!" The man screamed and moved the gun closer to his head.

"Trust me, I do. My boyfriend was also taken. I was out in the hall, trying to grab a late-night meal, but when I returned, he had vanished. So, I understand." The lady took a step closer to the man.

She went on, "But I didn't kill myself. The best way to honour them is to live on and confront this ghost. And who knows, maybe they are still alive."

"No, he is dead. I can feel it," the man declared, his finger tightening on the trigger. In an instant, a deafening shot reverberated through the air, and the man's lifeless body collapsed to the ground.