Playmobil Detectives: Island of the Spectres-19

As it was only several hours past midnight, the moonless sky was still completely dark. The lingering mist clung obstinately to the air, as if it were concealing a truth too sinister to be revealed. If it weren't for Shaun's flashlight and Tiffany's candle, the group would have had a tough time finding their way in the garden overgrown with weeds and thorns. Eventually, after some time of investigating, the group followed the continuous banging sound to the wooden hut in which Tiffany took her bath.

"See! This is the wooden hut I told you about!" Tiffany nearly screamed in delight at Nadia for acknowledging that she hadn't been dreaming about the hut.

"Shhh! I think we're approaching that noise," hushed Jeffrey as he led the way. "Try not to make any noise, as we don't know who or what we're dealing with."

Then, peering around a corner of the hut and trying to be as quiet as mice, under the dim light of the candle, the group could just about perceive the back of a female figure standing by the hut. Nonetheless, what was extremely curious about the figure was that she appeared to be surprisingly short, almost the size of a dwarf. 

Then, without warning, the noise has stopped abruptly and the woman scurried away, as if sensing that she was being watched.

Only after making sure that the 'coast was clear' did the group of friends emerge from their hiding place. Shaun stepped forward first and shone his flashlight on the ground, only to discover that pieces of chopped wood lay there.

"So, that's the reason for all that noise!" concluded Jeffrey, relieved. "She was just chopping some wood."

"OH, thank god!" exclaimed Tiffany. "I thought she was chopping the bones of a dead body or something. She looks like those African cannibals on TV."

"Please, save the details for yourself," replied Nadia, covering her ears. "We don't want to hear something so gory."

After their investigation, the group of exhausted friends returned to their respective bedrooms to try and make up for the lost sleep. Nevertheless, after laying on their beds for some time, neither Shaun nor Jeffrey could manage to fall asleep.

"Jeff, is it just me, or do you also feel like you're constantly being watched?" enquired Shaun after he discovered that Jeffrey wasn't asleep either.

"No, you're right! I feel the same, too," responded Jeffrey pensively. "The first time I stepped into this castle, I felt that it's kinda odd. It seems to be inhabited by hundreds of creatures we can't see."

"Well said," agreed Shaun. "But the creatures here seem to not want to show themselves, yet, I somehow feel that they're trying to communicate something to us."

"Perhaps we'll dream about it tonight, when we actually get some sleep," replied Jeffrey, rubbing his eyes.

"Do you feel that Klaudia appears a bit odd?" queries Shaun, lowering his voice. "On the way back, Tiffany told me that Klaudia's reflection didn't appear in the mirror."

"Jeez, you believe in Tiffany?" snorted Jeffrey. "She was probably just dreaming. No, I don't find Klaudia odd in any way whatsoever. In fact, she's the sweetest girl I've ever met." Jeffrey turned around to have his back facing Shaun. "I'm tired, let's not talk about this anymore."

After some time, Jeffrey eventually dozed off into a gentle snore, but Shaun was still pondering about what Tiffany had said. Suddenly, Shaun perceived something moving out of the corner of his eye. Then, when he looked closely, he discovered that a white figure of a ghost was standing by the window, waving his hand to motion Shaun to come forward. Shaun cautiously got off his bed and tiptoed to the window. To his utter horror, Shaun began to feel extremely dizzy as if he were being transported away from this world.

~To be Continued~