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How indeed? I swallow, “Um, well—”
An older male cuts me off. “The only help a ghost needs is to be directed toward the light.”
I shrug. “He seemed so real. I don’t think he’s a ghost.”
“Is it a demon?”
“That’s why you stayed? You still don’t think there’s really a ghost in Firebrook Castle?” a different female reporter asks.
“Yes,” I answer, wanting to hug this female for giving me my excuse. “That’s it—since ghosts don’t exist, there has to be another explanation for why this being isn’t entirely corporeal. A scientific explanation.”
The older male shakes his head. “He’s a dead being, stuck on this plane of existence, trying to find the entrance to eternity with the multigods. He’s angry because he’s lost and can’t find his way out. He doesn’t belong here. You need to stay away from him because he can become dangerous. What if he kills you and drags you with him into the land of the half-living?”
I tense because I can’t possibly entertain the idea that the Hyrrokin I met is actually dead and is only a representation of his former self. There’s no way. That male who held me last night was a living, breathing being. He’s alive and I have to help him. “No, I think he’s alive. He’s Hyrrokin. Look it up. They are a species whose facial features look satanic but actually they are very noble.”
“There was a Hyrrokin ghost standing at the foot of your bed? The Red Soldier is a Hyrrokin?”
“Yes, I’ve said this before. I’ve thought all along that your Red Soldier is actually a Hyrrokin male.” And then I raise my voice. “Does anyone here want to stay with me tonight and try to help this Hyrrokin who is stuck in the castle?” I question, testing the mood of the crowd.
“No!” they all answer in chorus.
“Okay,” I chuckle. “I’ll stay by myself again tonight.” It’s probably better that way. All I really want is to be able to sleep with him again, and it would be great if we could speak. I don’t really need a group of screaming locals messing that up for me at this point.
“You’re going to stay one more night? Is that safe? What if the Red Soldier hurts you?”
“Oh, he won’t hurt me,” I say, somehow certain of the Hyrrokin’s intensions.
“Can we send a vid drone with you to follow you around and livestream?” a reporter eagerly asks.
“No. Not gonna happen,” I answer firmly. I look around at the other reporters who I know are about to ask permission for their own drones. “I’m not letting in vid drones from any news or vid channel organization. Do not send one onto my property. I don’t mind at all anyone staying here at the gate and wall, trying to livestream what you can from the property line. There is no reception beyond the property line anyways. Everyone will have to wait here at the gate each day for me to arrive in the mornings with an update.”
“How long are you staying?” someone shouts out.
“I’m going to remain here until I get to the bottom of this mystery of who the Red Soldier really is. I believe he isn’t dead but is a living being who isn’t able to entirely phase into solid form.”
“Why would that happen?”
“I don’t know. I need to find a way to talk to him.” And then I pull out my tablet so I can look at the list I’ve made of all the things I need before I go back and see what I have on the top of the list. “You know how you can help me find out? Can someone here please get me a Hyrrokin translation chip? If I could talk to the male who is stuck in my castle, that would really help matters.”
4
Skogg
I’ve watched the female, fascinated by her every movement.
After she awoke, she tried to talk to me again, but I was unable to respond, or even understand her human speak. I remained in the room with her, leaning next to the fireplace because I was curious to see if she would see or hear me—but no, not even this perceptive female can see past the deconstruction of my atoms at this time of day.
I held her in my arms last night and slept with her by my side. It was the best night of sleep I’ve had since this whole nightmare began. Maybe the best night of my entire life. I’ve never simply slept with a female before. In the past I’ve only had quick episodes of pleasure mating, never in my own domicile, and I’d leave soon after.
But I want this soft human in my arms every night. I do not know her name, or her motivation for remaining in the castle. Her scent is irresistible, as are the bounce of her breasts and the sway of her generous hips.
I continue to wonder if she’s the being who can fix my condition. And I continue to remain optimistic that she’s unmated.
When I first arrived at this run-down castle, it had been rented for use as a top-secret laboratory. It was usable, but not in top condition. The scientists liked the fact that the grounds were so overgrown it kept the castle and environs hidden from view. They liked that this place was forgotten, and they did not mind that it was barely habitable. Prior to my arrival, they’d lived here for a few years, working on their experiments with almost zero interference from the outside world, which was exactly as they liked it.
When the lab exploded, it demolished the basement and smashed most of the windows in the upper stories. The roof remains stable, as are the walls and supports. But the kitchen was partially ruined, as were all methods of power and communication.
The only time I turn away from my constant perusal of this human is when she uses the restroom, or when she changes her clothes. I give her privacy for her personal needs, but the rest of the time I phase through doors and walls, closely following her progress around the castle and grounds. I need to be assured of her safety and my frustration grows, knowing that in my phased-out, invisible condition, I cannot help her in the least. She could fall and be hurt, or kidnapped before my eyes, and I could do nothing but watch.
