Hostel M2

M2-Part XXIII

**REMEMBER TO VOTE, COMMENT AND SHARE**

Professor Parker's face showed clearly how disturbed he was after his second attempt to reach the Vice Chancellor proved abortive; both times, it ended with an automated voice saying to leave a voicemail. He pulled away the phone from his ear, reminding himself that Professor Wells had told them to stay away from investigation's way and that was probably the reason he hadn't answered his phone.

"He's not answering his phone," Parker announced to them.

"He's probably in a meeting or something," Chris said with a shrug. The look on his face told that he knew better and with the expression form Mr. Parker and Henry, it was almost certain that they all carried the same thing in mind.

"We can't do anything about that now, can we?" Henry's voice was more of a consolation than anything. Like the way one would sound when reassuring a bereaved fellow that all was fine. He turned to the priest who seemed to be having a hard time easing himself up. "Asides an exorcism, there's got to be another way to send an apparition away, right?"

Marcello pulled himself up, setting up the pillow right behind his neck and falling back into the head rest behind. "I can think of two," he started, "one would be contacting the ghost and telling it to leave."

Chris scoffed at the suggestion. Marcello made it sound like it was same as two people a heart-to-heart talk and if it was as easy as it sounded, why hadn't he just done that in the first instance instead of attempting to exorcize the hostel.

"This isn't the United States and Russia discussing how to end nuclear weapon manufacturing, Marcello," Chris said.

"I know, and considering the kind of apparition involved, I doubt it would've worked," the priest said. "It's not always guaranteed the apparition would leave for a certain since some of these apparitions are either not ready to leave our world or don't know how to cross to the other realm."

"Others remain earthbound for unresolved personal business or if it has a message for a loved one," Professor Parker added, "all the same, we sure do know where Mr. Jones fits in."

"Well, what's the other way?" Henry asked.

"The book of the dead," Marcello breathed out.

Parker cast a glance at his friend. The book of the dead, the last time he'd heard Marcello talk about this strange book, he had gone missing for a month. Not a call, nor a letter for one whole month only for him to return as a strange shadow of himself-at least to Parker, that's what it was. Marcello had explained that he had been involved in things beyond the normal, pulled by a wandering ghost into a sea of calamities and he had had to put an end to all of it. He had spent a year in an asylum after that and then done 9 months at rehab, all of which weren't good memories and now, here he was bringing it up again.

"What's that?" His eye brows furrowed at how unusual the name sounded.

"Ancient Egyptian kings always had their names in the book of the dead when they died, it was some sort of royal records," Marcello started, "for people like me, it comes in handy knowing where the bodies of wandering ghosts were buried."

"Why so?" Chris asked.

"When a ghost's remains are burned, a reaper takes their soul to where it belongs." Air escaped his lungs in a sigh, "tried that once and I sure can testify, my life was only hanging by a thread by the time I was done."

So looking at it from every angle, we still end up dead, Chris thought to himself. There was no way asking the apparition to leave would work, the only possibility was that conjuring it would only probably aggravate it the more. And burning the remains of an apparition sounded like going too far.

"What are our chances?" Henry asked, not quite sure if there was any possibility of them coming out alive either way.

"Communicating with Mr. Jones' ghost would mean me having to drifting out of this world, something I'm not strong enough for," Marcello said. "The other way, however would be the closest to safe."

"You want us digging up dead bodies?" Chris's eye shone like his ears had just heard the unimaginable-which was what it sounded like. "This is total insanity. I mean, you just said you barely made it out alive." He shook his head.

"Ghosts typically don't hang around cemeteries because there is very little living energy there," Marcello explained, "they often draw energy from the living's life source or emotions-negative emotions like hate and anger."

There was a moment of silence in the room. It was as though their minds communicated telepathically, a moment of consideration of what the odds were and how possible their options seemed.

"There's no time for absolute considerations now, at the end everyone still dies," Marcello said, "be it by the hands of mortal men or by the darkness of this world."

"The book of the dead, how do we find it?" Henry finally said, mustering all the courage he could to speak.

"What?" Chris interrupted, "you're actually going to do this?"

"Can't you see what we've gotten into!" Henry snapped, "If you got a better idea, better say something now because I don't see any other way out of this."

Chris remained silent, he had never seen Henry snap for whatever and his reaction caught Chris off guard.

"I don't know where you'd find the book of the dead," Marcello answered as Henry turned back to him, 'you'll have to find where his body was laid."

"I could call Maloney," Professor Parker chimed, "he should be able to help."

Henry nodded at the suggestion and then looked over at where Marcello sat on the bed. This was it; mind made up to take what might as well be their last action. Marcello understood the look on their faces, he'd been there. He took a moment to brief them on what the whole act was going to be like, what ghosts disliked-like iron- and how salt could go a long way in keeping unseen things away. Just as they were about to leave, Marcello had said a prayer-hopefully, whatever forces there was asides the darkness of the other realm would lend a hand.

Henry turned to Chris who hadn't said a word for a while, his face wore a disturbing look and Henry knew for sure what it was about.

"I'm not coming along," Chris muttered, looking away from Henry and Professor Parker's gaze.

"You don't have to," Henry answered and then swallowed.

"Neither do you."

Henry opened his mouth to say something but only air escaped his lips, he knew Chris was probably right but what did he stand to gain if he stayed behind? Simply wait around for his own turn in this game of numbers which Mr. Jones was playing? It was probably the only right thing to do now- taking another shot in the dark- after all, like Marcello had said, 'at the end, everyone dies.'

Without another word, Professor Parker and Henry exited the ward. As soon as they stepped into the lift, Professor Parker pulled out his phone to make a call.

**Hey guys :) Another update mmhmm. What do you think? And hey, I bet you learnt something interesting about ghosts, yes?**

=||=||=

Please don't forget to add to your Library if you haven't. I'd love to hear your feedback and hey...remember to Vote if you liked this part.