entered, walking along the track used by the cars to transport patrons. An eerie silence surrounded him. He shone his flashlight around, not seeing anything except cheesy-looking figures meant to scare. He passed by a coffin. Claws hung out of it.
Suddenly, something or someone flashed by him. Super fast. He spun around, scanning the darkness. It whizzed by him again.
“Who’s there?” Dan asked. At moments like this he wished he had a gun. “This is park security. Who’s there?”
The eerie silence continued. Things just didn’t feel right. Something was definitely wrong here. He felt a cold draft, and the hairs on the back of his neck went up. His face was sweaty and he heard himself panting out of fear. Dan didn’t scare easily so he knew something was up! Something foreign was in the atmosphere…unexplainable.
Again, whatever it was flashed quickly by, knocking into him. “Hey!” he said. “Stop! This is security. Stop!”
Silence.
* * *
“Welcome. Thank you for attending The Occult Files Magazine’s fifth annual ghost and paranormal convention,” Albert Taylor said into the podium’s microphone. He was a tall, lanky fiftysomething man with brown hair and long dark sideburns. “As our handy little brochure indicates, we have a full schedule of cool spooky lectures and workshops lined up for you, folks. This introductory lecture, Ghost Hunting 101, will cover the basics of forming your own ghost hunting/paranormal group, what each members’ ghost hunting kit should contain, legal issues and forms to use, the definition of a ghost, and so forth.” He looked ahead at his assistant, Jan, who was seated behind a laptop in the audience. She was a slender young woman with shoulder length red hair. “Jan, could you dim the lights and start the slide show? Thanks.”
The hotel ballroom darkened and there was some mumbling and whispers here and there as a picture appeared on the large white screen near Taylor. “Now, this first photo is a little grainy, but if you look carefully you can see the outline of a figure standing on the stairs. Notice the two orbs above the figure, too.”
Dan, sitting in the second row of the audience, studied the photo. Then he looked at a business card in his beefy hand: Professor Albert Taylor.
* * *
After the lecture there was a lengthy question and answer period. When it was finished, Taylor drank some water and put his papers in his briefcase. Dan approached the stage hesitantly, the business card still in his hand.
Taylor smiled at him. “Did you enjoy the presentation?”
“Very much,” Dan replied. “I…I wanted to talk to you about…something.”
Taylor closed his briefcase, walking down the stairs of the stage. “Sure. Let’s sit down.”
They sat in chairs before the stage. The ballroom was empty except for them and Jan, who was packing up the equipment.
Dan cleared his throat. “Well, I’m a security guard at Bizarro and I…I think I had a ghostly encounter the other night.”
“That used to be Funland, right?”
Dan nodded. “Another victim of the bad economy. A corporation bought it, gave it a new name, but essentially it’s the same attractions with some tweaking here and there.”
“Gotcha.”
“Anyway, someone or something broke into the Funhouse and the Haunted Goldmine so I checked it out…and boy, I never had an experience quite like that!” He chuckled. Dan was a heavyset, bearded man in his twenties with dark hair. “I truly believe it was a ghost…things just didn’t feel right. I felt this cold chill that I’ve never felt before. And I read about how other people also felt this draft when encountering ghosts. Something foreign was in the air…I had to get out of there. It didn’t feel right, you know?”
Taylor nodded. “What else happened when you were in there?”
“Well, it bumped into me, almost knocking me over. I didn’t feel flesh, but it felt like a person, you know? And it was fast!
Suddenly, something or someone flashed by him. Super fast. He spun around, scanning the darkness. It whizzed by him again.
“Who’s there?” Dan asked. At moments like this he wished he had a gun. “This is park security. Who’s there?”
The eerie silence continued. Things just didn’t feel right. Something was definitely wrong here. He felt a cold draft, and the hairs on the back of his neck went up. His face was sweaty and he heard himself panting out of fear. Dan didn’t scare easily so he knew something was up! Something foreign was in the atmosphere…unexplainable.
Again, whatever it was flashed quickly by, knocking into him. “Hey!” he said. “Stop! This is security. Stop!”
Silence.
* * *
“Welcome. Thank you for attending The Occult Files Magazine’s fifth annual ghost and paranormal convention,” Albert Taylor said into the podium’s microphone. He was a tall, lanky fiftysomething man with brown hair and long dark sideburns. “As our handy little brochure indicates, we have a full schedule of cool spooky lectures and workshops lined up for you, folks. This introductory lecture, Ghost Hunting 101, will cover the basics of forming your own ghost hunting/paranormal group, what each members’ ghost hunting kit should contain, legal issues and forms to use, the definition of a ghost, and so forth.” He looked ahead at his assistant, Jan, who was seated behind a laptop in the audience. She was a slender young woman with shoulder length red hair. “Jan, could you dim the lights and start the slide show? Thanks.”
The hotel ballroom darkened and there was some mumbling and whispers here and there as a picture appeared on the large white screen near Taylor. “Now, this first photo is a little grainy, but if you look carefully you can see the outline of a figure standing on the stairs. Notice the two orbs above the figure, too.”
Dan, sitting in the second row of the audience, studied the photo. Then he looked at a business card in his beefy hand: Professor Albert Taylor.
* * *
After the lecture there was a lengthy question and answer period. When it was finished, Taylor drank some water and put his papers in his briefcase. Dan approached the stage hesitantly, the business card still in his hand.
Taylor smiled at him. “Did you enjoy the presentation?”
“Very much,” Dan replied. “I…I wanted to talk to you about…something.”
Taylor closed his briefcase, walking down the stairs of the stage. “Sure. Let’s sit down.”
They sat in chairs before the stage. The ballroom was empty except for them and Jan, who was packing up the equipment.
Dan cleared his throat. “Well, I’m a security guard at Bizarro and I…I think I had a ghostly encounter the other night.”
“That used to be Funland, right?”
Dan nodded. “Another victim of the bad economy. A corporation bought it, gave it a new name, but essentially it’s the same attractions with some tweaking here and there.”
“Gotcha.”
“Anyway, someone or something broke into the Funhouse and the Haunted Goldmine so I checked it out…and boy, I never had an experience quite like that!” He chuckled. Dan was a heavyset, bearded man in his twenties with dark hair. “I truly believe it was a ghost…things just didn’t feel right. I felt this cold chill that I’ve never felt before. And I read about how other people also felt this draft when encountering ghosts. Something foreign was in the air…I had to get out of there. It didn’t feel right, you know?”
Taylor nodded. “What else happened when you were in there?”
“Well, it bumped into me, almost knocking me over. I didn’t feel flesh, but it felt like a person, you know? And it was fast!
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