FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Story -

Night was falling as the trees rustled from the wind that blew through the wooded area, disturbed only by the sound of an approaching diesel engine. Steadily, a set of headlights appeared and illuminated the gates to the abandoned campsite. It was an odd sight to see a plain looking box truck roll down the overgrown dirt road that led to the camps. While certainly standing out from the natural backdrop, the truck still came up to the gate before turning and performing a three point turn so that the back of the truck was pointed towards the old gates that blocked the way in.

A snow leopard came out of the cab of the truck and proceeded to open the back of the box truck to reveal a kind of home brewed yet "techy" mobile command post inside, complete with multiple flat screen monitors, a computer towards the "nose" of the truck, and a bunch of electronic equipment from cameras to exotic homemade gadgets. The snow leopard walked up the ramp and systematically started each electrical device inside. He was booting up the computer when a flash from outside and the sound of crunching gravel drew his attention. Stepping out to the bottom of the ramp, He spotted a SUV that was making its way down the long pathway. It was only a moment later that it pulled up to the gates, headlights casting an eerie glow among the woods before they were turned off and left the forest in darkness once again.

The snow leopard approached the SUV as the doors opened and he regarded each of the four passengers as they got out. The first one out was a red and black haired otter by the name of Alex Fisher, looking very much like a stereotypical otter with his typical mellow facial expression and amiable posture he had. Alex looked more like he belonged on some beach where he could be among the surf, not well inland where a large body of water was hours away by car. Next out of the vehicle was Jea Gilmore, a blonde gray tiger feline. He remembered hearing that the young girl was equal parts beauty, athletic and intelligent. Then there was Destiny Castro, someone who looked almost as out of place as Alex. The red panda wasn't as smart, nor as athletic as her companions. Instead, she still had a sharp, analytical eye for details and had a quite strategic mind when it came to placement and angles for capturing things. Then finally, there was Aclide Howells. A lot of teachers considered the fox a troublemaker and a pain to deal with, but the snow leopard was able to see past and bring out the better side of Aclide nature.

"Good evening Professor Hunter." Jea said as she closed the door.

"Good evening Ms. Gilmore, Ms. Castro, Mr. Howells, Mr. Fisher." Professor Perry Hunter greeted each of his students. "Hope the ride out here wasn't too much trouble."

"It was enough." Aclide snipped. Destiny rolled her eyes at the remark.

"He's only pouting because he almost missed the last two turnoffs to get here."

"Still," Alex spoke up to keep Aclide from starting an argument. "It wasn't as bad as it could have been. At least we were able to spot the turns before it was too late."

"I know what you mean." Perry said, gaining the attention of the others. "When I first scouted the location, I had to turn around a few times before I finally got here." The group snickered at that and the professor just smiled. "So..." He spoke as he clapped his hands together. "Shall we get down to business?" Everyone turned and entered the back of the truck into the makeshift office.

"So, what are we dealing with?" Destiny asked as she moved some of her red locks of hair back into place.

"Students, welcome to Dustfall Woods. An undeveloped forest that some of the locals avoid because of rumors of it being haunted." The professor stated as he handed each of them a folder. "The area we are going to be focusing our investigation on is the abandoned campground that was built on the edge of the forest." Perry turned and posted a few pictures on the cork-board that was hung next to a set of four monitors on the right wall.

Jea was the first to speak up as the professor was putting the photos up. "It says here that this was a campground that had originally opened back in 1967 and seen decent success for about fifteen years until it was closed down in 1982 when several campers had disappeared without a trace. Has the disappearances ever been explained?"

"To anyone's knowledge, no." Perry sighed. "They gave up after a month of searching, until the next one disappeared and the cycle repeated. It took six disappearances before the camp was closed."

"Fun." Alex snorted.

"Says here that the camp was reopened in 2008?" Destiny tried to clarify.

"That's correct." Perry answered. "It was reopened as a "Day Camp" for Cub Scout Troops in the cities to have a place to have activities in nature."

"It must have been pretty successful if the camp remained open for over a decade."

"I believe it was." Perry mused.

"So what happened to close it?" Aclide asked, barely skimming the contents of the folder.

"An entire troop disappeared in the summer of 2019."

"Wait..." Jea expressed as she looked up from the folder. "An entire troop? As in all the kids and their pack leader?"

"Yes..." Perry nodded solemnly. "According to information, they started doing sleepovers again in 2017 with no incidents. However, that only lasted until 2019 when an entire troop vanished mid August."

"Damn..." The students mused at the information, then Alex spoke up. "What happened after the disappearances?"

"Well, of course they searched for the missing troop members, but after two and a half months of not finding anything the camp was closed down for the season with talks of returning to a day camp only regimen. However, the pandemic hit as we all know and the camp was more or less left abandoned and forgotten." Perry looked up from the folder at his students. "Thoughts?"

The four college students pondered for a few moments, brooding over the information that they were told. Finally it was Alex to speak up. "How is this a paranormal investigation?" The otter asked. "It just sounds like there's been a rash amount of disappearances at this campsite."

"What's not being said in the records?"

"Local folklore says that the forest is haunted." The students all looked at the professor confused. "There are local legends that's been passed down that the forest was once considered a sacred site. What kind exactly has been lost with time, sadly. There were also some statements from those searching for the lost campers that say that they have seen both unnatural and grotesque things well after nightfall. As well as either spotting a dark shadow briefly or some kind of movement. Though all those statements remain unconfirmed or offhandedly dismissed." Once the professor finished everyone was soberly quiet. Thoughts of the history of where they were going to investigate weighing on their minds as questions with no answers kept coming to the forefront. He could feel the hesitation that was forming among the college students, though he didn't blame them one bit. "As usual, this is only a volunteer investigation. If any of you want to back out, now is the time."

"You know that I'm in this for the long haul professor." Jea said first. "I'm certain that I'll be in equally dangerous and mysterious places if not more so once I get my Archaeology degree."

"In for a penny, in for a pound." Alex said. "I'm here and I'm not changing my mind. Besides, things should prove interesting." Aclide nodded in agreement behind the otter.

Everyone turned to the red panda who just shrugged. "We're here anyway, so shall we just get to it then?"

The professor grinned with a light chuckle before turning to the computer. Typing some commands on the keyboard and an image appeared on the top left monitor. "This is the layout of the campground." Perry started as he indicated the image on the screen "We are here, on the north east part of the camp. The entrance is connected to the central area with the main building. There's a large room that can be converted from a large dining hall to a decent size dance floor for everyone, a kitchen off of that as well as two bathroom facilities and a few offices. To the east and west of the building are the bunk houses, six in all and their own separate space for outdoor activities that don't interfere with the others. The south path leads to the activity field and a small dock for the lake with a storage shed and a small boat house respectively, but there has been little to no activity in that area." He then turned back to the young adults. "Per usual, setup is up to you with how you want to proceed. I will be here monitoring you and your progress."

The group was quiet as they looked over the map, considering how they should start their investigation when Destiny broke the silence. "I think that we should start with the sound sensors." She said as she approached the digital map. "If we place a sensor here, here, here and here," She pointed out four locations on the map, the two intersections that lead to each bunk house, a spot in the main building, and a location near the boathouse and storage shed. "We should be able to narrow our search considerably."

"Why one down by the lake?" Alex asked. "Professor Hunter just said that there's been little to no activity in that area."

The red panda looked back at the otter. "Better to have it covered just in case so we don't risk missing something by mistake."

"I agree." Jea chimed in. "Just because there's supposedly little to no activity in that part of the camp doesn't mean that there's a chance the ghost could wander through that area." After a moment of reflection, Alex nodded in agreement.

"Then after we have a general area, we can start narrowing down the ghost's location with motion sensors."

"Followed by finding out exactly what we are dealing with." Aclide finished for the group.

"Sounds like a good plan." Perry said with a smile. "Now all that's left is to gear up and put it into action."

The students nodded and turned to the equipment on the wall behind them and started picking their equipment that they were going to start out using. First thing they each grabbed and put on were one of the four head mounted cameras and one of those smart watches so that the professor could monitor them from the truck's computer. Then they automatically each grabbed a flashlight, a two-way radio and one of the improvised sound sensors. There was a little bit of discussion on what their third equipment that they would take from there, but it was quickly decided that Destiny and Aclide would grab one of the six video cameras while Jea and Alex pocketed an EMF reader.

"Now that we are all set, I think it's best we break up into two groups to cover more ground." Jea commented as she looked at her companions. "Alex and Destiny, you two will place the sensors for both the west and east bunkhouses while Aclide and I will take our sensors down to the south field by the boathouse and storage shed then we'll finish off with the main building. Once we're done, we'll meet back here and start narrowing down our search."

-

Three minutes later, Destiny and Alex walked down the west path to the bunkhouses. Ahead of them was a small clearing that served as a crossroad for the other paths to the three individual bunkhouses. She continued to the middle where all four paths converged and started to set up the sensor, which was basically a large microphone wired up to its own one-way radio that broadcast to the computer in the box truck with a tripod base so it could be placed down. Alex meanwhile was looking around at the scenery, scanning for anything out of the ordinary.

"... I don't like it."

"Like what?" Destiny asked as she continued to turn the device in her hands on.

"Don't you hear it?" He asked, kind of to her annoyance.

"Hear what?"

"Exactly." He said, matter of factually. The red panda had to suppress a growl and fight the need to stand up and smack the otter upside the head.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Listen..."

Destiny stopped what she was doing and just listened to the quiet woods. "I don't hear anything." She said as she went back to what she was doing and placed the now active sensor on the ground.

"That's just it." Alex said as he kept looking around. "There's no sound. No night birds, no crickets or insects that are typically out at night. Hell... Even the breeze is barely making a sound." When the otter finished, Destiny had already stood up with the radio mic in her hand to report back to the professor when she stopped and listened again.

Near perfect silence.

She could feel the air blow past her, but it was as if the forest itself refused to make a sound. She opened her mouth to say something, but it felt like something was keeping her from speaking at that moment. She could feel the fur on the back of her neck raise on their own accord, even Alex and his easy-going nature seemed to have taken on an appalled demeanor as he scanned their surroundings. After a moment the feeling passed, but not completely.

"Lets..." Destiny had to take a breath to calm herself before she continued. "Let's hurry up and place the next sensor and get back to the truck..."

-

Jea and Aclide walked quietly along the south path to the field and lake, figuring on placing the furthest sound sensor near the storage buildings before placing their other sensor in the main building near the entrance. The eerie silence wasn't lost on the two and they kept a diligent eye on their surroundings. Another fact that wasn't lost on the two was that the light from their flashlights seemed to be absorbed by the darkness of the woods and the lights weren't the cheap ones that one could buy from the local dollar store, but a more expensive model that normally had no trouble illuminating nearly everything seventy-five feet away. In these woods however, the beam barely reached thirty feet ahead on their path and seemed like the light refused to penetrate the woods.

"This... Isn't good." Aclide said, breaking the silence.

"What do you mean?"

"These woods." The fox commented as he panned the camcorder around their surroundings. "Things are too still for a place such as this. The energy in these woods is off..."

"The professor did say that these used to be sacred grounds." Jea thoughtfully remembered. "The question though, is sacred grounds for who?"

"That also worries me."

The blond feline turned around and faced the fox. "Don't tell me you're getting scared. You had the chance to back out before we started."

"Trust me," Aclide locked his eyes with hers. "In this place, it's best that we are afraid." Jea wasn't sure how to answer what the fox had just said, heck, she wasn't sure if there was a response to that.

"West sound sensor in place."

The sudden announcement by Destiny over the radio nearly made Jea jump out of her fur, something that was very uncommon for the gray-tiger feline. Aclide was right, there was definitely something very off putting about these woods and was adversely affecting them.

"Understood." Returned the professor. "Testing the connection... Receiving the feed. Looking good guys, go ahead and place the next one."

"Good... We're moving on."

"Come on. We're lagging behind." Jea said as she turned to head back down the path. The sooner they get things placed, the sooner that their investigation will come to an end.

-

Alex was kneeling on the ground, fidgeting with activating his sound sensor as Destiny kept vigilance on their surroundings. She had the palm size camcorder out, slowly turning around nervously now that she had been made aware of her surroundings. The subtle lack of ambient noise was putting her on edge as well as her otter companion with how long it was taking him to bring the sensor online. She could only imagine how things were with Jea and Aclide since they didn't announce having their sensor ready until they were near the eastern path.

"There." Alex proudly exclaimed as he set the device on the ground. "East sensor should now be online."

"Checking... Confirm. Got a good read on the sensor." The professor said over the radio. "Go ahead and head back, Jea and Aclide should be just behind you."

"Alright professor, see you in a few." Alex said as he stood up. The two started to head back to the main area when a loud creek echoed through the woods.

"What was that?" Destiny hissed as she turned around, her tail fluffed out to twice its normal size.

"It... Sounded like a door opening," Alex mumbled, unsure if he was correct or not.

"Should we check it out?"

"Do we really want to?" Alex muttered, not catching his companion's attention. "Which one was it? There are three cabins over here." As if to answer the otter's question, a sudden crash came from the right path.

"Mr. Fisher, Ms. Castro, I'm getting quite a bit of activity over there with the sensor. Is something happening?"

"It seems like the ghost is making its presence known."

"Your choice if you want to check it out now or wait to get more equipment."

Alex stood there for a moment, unsure what to say or do when Destiny started to shake the camera in her hands. Before he could ask her what was wrong a cold breeze over took the two of them and it felt like an icy hand had just gripped the otter's wrist, causing it to nearly go numb.

Whoosh...

A feeling of icy dread crept down his spine from the noise. His survivor's impulse was to grab Destiny's wrist and run, but something was keeping the two of them rooted to the spot they were at. His surroundings were slowly fading from his notice, even the professor's worried calls weren't making it through to the otter or the red panda. It wasn't until a hand slapped his shoulder that Alex was brought back to reality.

"Alex, you okay?"

Alex nearly jumped out of his pelt with a scream when he felt that hand touch him. A warm feeling washed over him as he turned to see Aclide looking at him with a worried look. Wait... Was the Fox's blue eye glowing? The otter shook his head to regain his senses, mentally slapping himself awake before looking back at his friend and could barely see the irises of the fox. He knew that Aclide had heterochromia, one blue eye and one green eye but he never noticed either of them glowing before. Was it a trick of the light? After noticing that the otter was moving, Aclide went over to Destiny and placed his hand on her shoulder too. The red panda gasped suddenly and nearly jumped away from him with a yelp as she also reacted from the touch.

"Aclide... W-what are you doing here?"

"Well, the professor sent me over when you two didn't respond to him."

"What about Jea?"

"She should be fine." Aclide said thoughtfully. "She should be done placing the sensor by the time we get back to the main area."

-

Jea placed the last sound sensor on the covered patio of the main building. "There." She sighed as she stood up and grabbed the mic on her shoulder. "Last sensor has been placed."

"Stand by..." Came the reply from the professor. "Got a positive feed. We're looking good and all the sensors are active." Jea was about to leave when a noise caught her attention. "Ms Gilmore, I just got a spike in your area. Any idea what caused it?"

"No Professor, but I heard it. It sounded like it came from inside."

"Tread carefully, we have no idea what we are dealing with yet."

"Understood." She said as she approached the doors leading inside. The doors opened with a long, drawn out creek and the feline cautiously entered the building. Past the doors where the dining hall was, complete with unkempt tables, scattered chairs and a layer of dust that seemed to covered everything inside. If she was being honest, some of the furniture looked like some of them were pushed out of the way in a hurry. Perhaps as if someone had tried to rush through the room and was knocking everything out of their way. Reaching out, she felt a switch and flicked the light on. The room certainly had a lodge feel with the exposed wood and the lighting gave off a yellow tint with a few scout paraphernalia hanging along the wall.

Something was drawing Jea up to the head of the room and she found herself making her way around the furniture when she gasped when she spotted something on the floor. In front of where the scout leaders would sit was a pentagram summoning circle with a candle at each point of the five point star. The heckles on the back of her neck rose as she knelt down and tried to touch the circle itself. At first she thought that it was made from blood, but after touching the circle she found out that it was red wax that was used by whoever made it.

"Hey guys..." She spoke into her mic. "I found a summoning circle and... It looks like it was made recently. As in the last year or two."

...Static...

"Guys?..."

...Static...

"Can anyone hear me?"

...Static...

"Professor?"

With nothing but static coming from the radio, Jea starts to back away; fully intending to make her exit. She was only able to take a few steps when the lights in the room began to unnaturally flicker like some kind of strobe light. A piercing burst of static came from the radio, the high pitched noise caused the cat to double over and cover her ears in pain from the frequency.

Ring Around the Rosy...

Jea shook her head to try and regain some of her senses, everything around her just seemed to be freaking out around her. Her senses were being overwhelmed by everything from the flashing lights, the irregular burst of static, to the disembodied child-like sing-song voice that was coming from all around her.

Pocket full of poses...

Her mind was starting to go into panic mode with the sensory overload that she was experiencing. Lights were randomly flashing on and off at random, even her flashlight was flickering wildly. In a moment of lucidity, she pulled out the EMF Reader that was in her pocket and flicked it on.

Ashes... Ashes...

Jea could barely focus on the device that was in the palm in her hand. The device was whining as the lights on the device were flashing at random so fast that she could barely catch the lights as they were flashing. She could see that the thing was flashing green, yellow, orange, back to green... Red...

They all fall DOWN!...

Just as suddenly things had happened, they stopped. The room was cast in darkness with Jea standing there, nearly petrified from the ghost event that had just happened. The only light in the room was the green light from the EMF Reader in her hand. Whatever it was, it had moved on but boy did it leave an impact on her.

"Hey Jea, you alright?" A female voice called out from the darkness.

"Y-yeah... I'm alright Destiny. " Jea called out as she pocketed the reader and patted herself down, looking for her flashlight. "Just need a moment for my eyes to adjust." She noticed movement of another flashlight from the opposite side of the room, followed shortly by Destiny coming out of a hallway near where the head table was. "Be careful over there," She warned. "There's a circle by the head table and the ghost did Not like me touching it."

"Son of a..." The panda cursed as she flashed the area with her light.

"Think this room is its haunt?"

"I'm not convinced." Destiny thought out loud. "Alex and I went through our own event before Aclide snapped us out of whatever was happening."

"We better get back to the professor and compare notes."

-

"So..." Perry spoke out loud as he mulled over what the four had told him. "There were two ghost events that you experienced, though not together."

"That's right Professor." Alex said in agreement.

"Too bad that we didn't get any evidence." The red panda pouted. The snow leopard eyebrow crooked as he looked at her.

"Didn't you though?" He asked which three of them looked at the professor with some confusion on their faces. "From your descriptions of events, you collected at least one, if not two, pieces of evidence."

"How so?"

"For one," Perry started as he leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed. "Jea, you mentioned that you were able to pull the reader out and turn it on before the event ended, correct?"

"Yeah..."

"So, do you remember how many lights were on during the event?"

"I... I'm not certain." Jea said as she tried to remember. "It was just so surreal when it was happening and the device was just spazzing out as it happened."

"Do you remember how many came on or what color the reader flashed?"

"I..." Jea had to think for a moment. While fresh in her memory, the sensory overload she was feeling at the time made remembering everything a jumbled mess. "I almost think that all five lit up."

"Wouldn't hurt to double check." Aclide commented offhandedly. "But I would call that an EMF level Five."

"A strong possibility." Perry nodded. "And one that I agree with. Now Mr. Howells. When you found Mr. Fisher and Ms. Castro, you said that you could see their breath when they talked?"

"Yeah..."

"That's right." Alex spoke up. "It felt like it was super cold when Alex found us. Like being outside in the dead of winter without a coat."

"Another thing to double check, but I'd classify that as Freezing Temperatures."

"And that is without us really looking." Destiny thought out loud. "Strange that it's so active so quickly though."

"Yes. It's quite worrying." The snow leopard agreed. "Still it's best to figure out what it is that we are dealing with."

"Assuming that we aren't dealing with more than one ghost." Alex commented as he nodded to the monitors on the wall, everyone turned to see what the otter was looking at. Everyone then made their displeasure known with a growl or a grunt as they looked at the monitor with the sensor activity.

Perry couldn't help but sigh.

"East sensor is picking up a steady source of noise while the south sensor is picking up intermittent sounds."

"Don't forget about the summoning circle in the dining hall." Added Destiny. "Hard to say if that is connected to the haunting or not."

"I'm not sure." Jea injected in thought. "Yes someone made that thing but from the way everything is, I think that was something done within the last year or so."

"Think it was made by one of the locals or someone else trying to figure out what happened here?" Alex asked, to which Jea just shrugged.

"In any case," Perry said, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "We still need to document the circle with a photo as well as figure out where the ghost haunt is."

"I don't want anything to do with that thing." Destiny nearly hissed. "Those circles and I don't get along very well."

"And the ghost didn't exactly like me fidgeting with it either." Jea injected.

"I'll do it." Aclide spoke up. Everyone turned to the fox as he continued. "I'll go and take photos of the circle as well as investigate what is going on by the lake. Meanwhile everyone else can focus on the east barracks area."

"Aclide, are you sure?" Asked Perry. "There's no reason that Alex can't at least go with you."

"Maybe. But, Alex would be better staying with the girls so the three of them can find out where its main haunt is."

"I'm not sure if it's wise to spit up like that, especially with how strong the ghost events have been."

"Something could happen to you by yourself you know."

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself." Aclide said as he grinned deviously.

-

"Think he'll be alright on his own?" Destiny asked as they started down the east path.

"Aclide seems to think so." Alex shrugged. "Though with what has gone on in the last ten minutes alone, doesn't mean I'm not worried for him. Or us."

"Well, I wouldn't count him out." Jea said as she panned the camcorder around, looking for anything out of the ordinary. "That fox has been crafty in the time that I've known him. I'm certain he can handle himself."

The trio continued to go down the path till they got to the intersection where the sound sensor was. Figuring that the area was a good place to start, they started to break out the equipment they had gathered. Jea handed the camcorder to the panda and pulled out the temperature gun she had and started to take readings along with Alex.

"I'm not seeing anything out of the ordinary." Destiny said as she turned in place, using the camera's night vision to scout the area.

"And all I'm getting is average temperatures." Alex mentioned as he monitored the readings.

"Do you remember where the sound came from earlier? It might be where the ghost's haunt is."

"I think..." Destiny had to think back to when the event happened, trying to remember where the noise had come from. "I think to the south? Maybe to the east. I'm having a hard time remembering. Alex?" The otter shook his head no.

"Then let's start with the south bunkhouse." Jea suggested as they started along the branching path. As they neared the bunkhouse, Destiny had an idea.

"Hey guys, I'm going to run back and grab a tripod so we can have video on the bunkhouse."

Jea turned in place and flashed her a smile and a thumbs up and Destiny turned to jog back to the entrance. Even with someone with her, the forest gave her the creeps. Alone was nearly frightening with how still the campgrounds were. She had just passed through the gates when she heard them swing close with a creek and a click.

"The hell?" The panda went back to the gate and tried to push them back open when she screamed in pain.

"Ms Castro!" Professor Hunter shouted as he ran out of the back of the truck. As soon as he came out, he saw the red panda holding onto the closed gate. Trying to think quickly, the snow leopard body-checked the young adult away. "Ms Castro, are you alright."

"It hurts..." Was all Perry was able to get out from the hyperventilating red panda. He had to guide her into the back of the truck and had her sit in the chair. Grabbing the med kit that he had in the portable office, he knelt in front of her and let in a sharp gasp as he inspected Destiny's paws. The pads of Destiny's hands were pale and showed signs of starting to blister in several spots. Shaking himself out of his stupor, the snow leopard went to work applying first aid.

"I'm doing what I can, but we're going to have to have you checked out by a doctor no later than tomorrow." The panda nodded in response, slowly calming down from her ordeal.

"Wh-what about the others?" She managed to ask. Perry sighed as he finished wrapping the panda's hands in gauze. He got up when he was done and patted her shoulder as he went to his desk where he had his radio set up.

"Mr. Fisher, Ms. Gilmore. Do you read?" He spoke into the base mic that was on the desk.

...Static...

"Mr. Fisher, Ms. Gilmore. Are you there?"

...Static...

"Mr. Fisher, Ms. Gilmore!"

...Static...

"Alex! Jea! Respond!"

...Static...

"What's going on?"

"I... Don't know." Perry said nervously.

-

Jea was scanning the clearing that the bunkhouse was in, hazarding a guess that it was about a half an acre with a modest looking cabin sitting just off to the side of the path they had just traveled. The other side was still set up with a few outdoor objects like archery targets, picnic tables, a fire ring, and a few other miscellaneous things scattered around that were never picked up in the years that they've been out. Her and Alex were taking readings around the clearing before they checked out the bunkhouse proper. She was about ready to say something when... Creeeeek... The Bunkhouse door opened in front of her, offering her entry into the dark abode.

"Did you catch that Alex?" Jea asked, not taking her eyes off the door as she pulled out her EMF reader. Before they had headed back out, she had put on her utility vest that she owned that has a lot of pockets built in it and had grabbed as much of the equipment as she could.

"Yeah... I did." The otter muttered nervously. "I don't like it."

Jea approached the door with caution as she activated the reader. Things were quiet until she got within arms reach of the door and the reader started shrieking.

"EMF level five." She said as she held up the reader to show all five lights glowing.

"Confirm Level five reading." Alex said into his radio.

Jea pushed the door open a little more and stepped in, shining her light into the rustic building. She found a light switch near the door and flicked the switch to illuminate the room and reveal the interior to the cat. There were eight double bunks in all with two rows of four along the length of the cabin though two of the end bunks were tipped over and blocking access to the windows that were on each end wall. In front of her was a small hallway with what looked to be three more doors. She continued further in, she pulled out a camcorder from her vest pocket so she could scan the room with it. As soon as her tail entered fully into the cabin, the door slammed shut.

"Alex?" as she whirled on the door. She gripped the knob and tried to turn it to no avail. "Alex, the door is shut tight. I can't open it!" She shouted as she tried to force the door.

Nothing.

"Alex," She called into the radio. "I'm locked in, I can't open the door"

Nothing.

Jea started to pound on the door. "Alex!"

-

At first, Alex was almost on the opposite side of the clearing and didn't notice what had happened to Jea until he heard the door slam shut. With the atmosphere outside, he nearly jumped out of his pelt when he heard the loud noise. "Jea, is everything alright?" He called out loudly to no response. Confused, he started to walk over to the cabin. Grabbing the radio's mic, he tried again. "Jea, can you hear me?"

...Static...

"Great..." He muttered as he approached the cabin. His annoyance turned to worry as he heard the pounding on the door and the jiggling of the door knob as Jea tried to shout something through the wooded door. He barely put a foot on the first step when he felt an icy grip on his tail and was suddenly pulled away. His chin slammed onto the small wooden porch as he fell from the sudden motion. Then the next thing he knew, he was being dragged rapidly into the woods!

"JEA!!!" He screamed as he went past the tree line...

-

Jea gasped as she heard Alex's cry for help, her heart sinking as the realization that she was helpless, trapped, and alone. Her mind raced as she tried to figure out what to, trying desperately not to let her mind sink into thoughts of despair. A quick search of the cabin reviled that there was no other way out beyond the shut door that she came in through. When the cabin lights flickered, an idea popped in her head and she pulled out the spirit box that she had tucked in her vest. She was glad that her vest had large pockets so she could store the large device, something that she always found handy. The device itself was basically a modified radio with a scanner that would search local frequencies. Sometimes what came out of the speaker sent chills down her spine. She swallowed and turned on the device.

"Are you there?"

...Static...

...I'm here...

She could feel the fur on her tail bristle at the response. She mentally noted the fact that the spirit box picked up a voice. She took a deep breath and slowly letting it out into a small cloud of vapor.

"Where are you?"

...Static...

...Behind you...

She instantly whirred on the spot only to find empty space behind her. This ghost seems to be playing tricks on her to get her even more spooked than she already was, and it was working.

"What do you want?"

...Static...

...Die!...

The lights began to flicker around her as the air started to leave her. Jea gasp at her neck in response, trying to grasp the intangible force that was sucking the life out of her.

...Ring Around the Rosy...

She tried to fight the unseen force that was attacking her. Reaching and clawing at the air, trying to loosen or knock something back that was holding her there.

...Pocket full of poses...

Her arms were flailing, trying to do everything in her power to fight off her assailant. She tried kicking as she felt the ground under her fall away much to the same effect.

...Ashes... ...Ashes...

With the flashing lights around her, it was hard to tell if her sight was actually fading or not. But with the darkness edging closer to overtaking her vision, she wasn't going to be lasting much longer...

...They all fall DOWN!...

Boom!

What happened next was really fuzzy for the blonde feline to the point that she wasn't sure if it was her imagination or if it actually happened when she recalled the events later. The door had suddenly burst into splinters, the wooden fragments engulfed in ghostly blue flames as they flew into the room. In place of the door was now a white fox that looked equal parts glowing and transparent as it sat just before the door frame with what might have been several tails fanned out behind it with those ghostly blue flames at the tips. The fox came into the cabin as the flames from the tails suddenly shot forward to the space in front of Jea, enveloping the form that was suffocating her. The malicious entity let Jea loose, causing her to fall unceremoniously onto the floor as a humanoid shape formed by the spreading fire. The last semi-coherent thing that she could recall was a loud, ungodly wail that caused her skin to crawl as she gasped for breath and darkness took her as she passed out.

-

She was barely conscious, everything bathed in an icky cold darkness that had a strong grip on her. She was trying to leave the darkness that had her trapped, but something was trying hard to keep her where she was. There were voices in the darkness, whispers that she couldn't fully understand. Some were beckoning her, others seemed to be warning her to get away. It was a chorus of overlapping noise that she wanted desperately to escape from.

Jea!... Jea! Wake up!...

The voice barely registered in her mind, but it was enough to start drawing her back from wherever she was. The darkness surrounding her wasn't giving her up easily, it was as if she had been dunked in a pool of tar by the way it grasped her. The voices began to grow, calling out for her to join them more and more. They seem to be fighting her, pulling her back into the darkness; refusing to let her go. In an instant, a warm light pierced the darkness surrounding her. She felt herself being lifted and the voices began to fade away along with the darkness that was threatening to take her.

-

Jea's eyes shot open as she sat up, gasping for breath. She couldn't help but to cough as the cool night air filled her lungs. She could feel her heart racing as her body recovered from whatever ordeal that she had just endured. A gentle hand rubbed her back, helping her to calm down from what had just happened.

"You're okay Jea." Aclide said calmly as he helped support the feline.

"What happened?"

"I was hoping that you could tell me. I found you in the cabin passed out, on death's door and the inside filled with smoke."

"Smoke?" Confused, she looked from Aclide to the cabin. Sure enough, there were plumes of smoke coming from where the door used to be as well as from vents in the walls and roof. "When... How..."

"No idea." The fox said. "I was hoping that you could tell me?"

"I remember getting locked in the cabin and using the spirit box to see if I could talk to the ghost. Then..." Jea shook her head as she tried to remember. "I... Can't... Recall anything after that. I do remember talking to it with the box and it responded, but after that... Nothing..." She turned to face Aclide and just for a moment she swore that his blue eye was glowing briefly, but it quickly faded. Did she imagine it?

"So you don't remember anything?"

"N-no..." Jea said as she tried to push further into her memories. A vague recollection of a ghostly white fox with a glowing blue eye briefly appeared in her mind's eye, but that felt like a dream and not something that had actually happened. She shook her head. "I don't remember anything after it responded to me over the box."

"I see." Aclide sighed in response. "Can you walk? I think that we should leave this place."

"What about Alex?" She asks, remembering the otter and what had happened to him.

"He didn't go back to the Truck?"

"No, it sounded like he was dragged off after I was locked inside."

Aclide cursed as he stood up. He left Jea's side and started to look around the field. By the time Jea was able to stand and join the fox in his search, he was already standing by the forest edge looking forlorn into the woods. Standing next to the fox, it was clear that someone was unwillingly dragged into the woods and into the underbrush. Despite the strength of the flashlight that Aclide was holding, the darkness in the woods was too deep to be able to track the drag marks. Aclide shook his head.

"There's no way we'd be able to find him in the dark." There was a bit of sadness in the fox's voice. "The best we can do is come back in the daylight, search for him and hope for the best. Otherwise, we risk getting lost in the woods trying to find him."

As much as Jea didn't want him to be, Aclide was right. If they tried to search for their friend in the dark, they'd risk getting turned around, lost or perhaps something worse. It didn't sit right though. To leave their friend to whatever fate without doing at least Something. As much as she wanted to run into the woods to search for the otter, the logical side of her agreed with the fox.

"Come on..." Aclide said as he squeezed her shoulder. "Let's get back to the Professor and Destiny."

The two made their way back to the entrance, thankfully without any more incidents and were immediately greeted by a worried Destiny and Professor Hunter. Both groups were shocked to learn what had happened to each other, though it seems that Aclide had the easiest time of the four. News of Alex's disappearance hit Destiny hard and it was all that the other three could do to keep the red panda from running off into the forest to find him. But in the end, Professor Hunter had agreed with Aclide's logic that it was best for them to leave and return in the daylight to look for the otter. Especially with Jea's near death incident and Destiny's injury to her hands.

An awkward silence settled over the group as they hastily packed up and left the camp, Jea and Destiny riding in the car with Aclide while the professor drove the truck behind them. Jea was in the passenger seat as Aclide drove, the girls felt absolutely drained and Destiny had drifted off in the back seat. Despite her wanting to join the red panda in drifting off, Jea found herself unable to even attempt to rest. Her thoughts kept going back to the campsite and all that had happened. In reality, they were there for maybe a total of eighty minutes; give or take. Yet after all their ordeals, it felt like they had been there all night. The Professor seemed rather solemn as they were packing up their equipment, probably blaming himself for the events that had happened as it was his own side project that he brought his students in on.

Though what stung the most was the feeling of abandoning Alex. None of them wanted to leave the otter, but there was little that they could do with it being late at night. Even the local search and rescue refused to come out until daylight once they found out where the group was, refusing to let one of their own become a part of the forest's statistics.

Jea sighed as she looked out of the passenger side window and off into the distance. As they neared the edge of the woods, the canopy of trees gave way to a clear starry sky and a brightly lit moon. It wasn't long until they were driving along a stretch of road that had a clear view of the lake with the moon casting its reflection on the water. Jea couldn't help but to think of what a view it would have been had circumstances been different. Then she noticed something. It might have been off in the distance, but she swore she saw something. A shadow in the reflection of the moon.

"Aclide..."

"Hm?"

"Stop."

"What!?"

"Pull over and stop."

"What, why???"

"Just pull over and STOP!"

Rightfully confused, Aclide complied with the feline's request. The motion was enough to rouse the resting panda, garnering a sleepy "What's going on?" as Aclide pulled the car off to the side of the road. Before anything more could be said, Jea was already throwing off her seat belt and was getting out of the car as the professor came up behind them.

"JEA!" She heard someone call out to her, but she ignored it in favor of making it to the water's edge. She didn't pay attention to anything else besides the surface of the lake as she ran across the stretch of land between the road and the water's edge. Upon reaching the shore she continued into the water, not even phased as the cold lake water entered her boots and she didn't stop until she was knee deep. The water was more or less calm as the gray-tiger cat surveyed the water's surface, only a few ripples could be seen from her entering the lake. She kept up her vigilance , she could have sworn that she had seen someone swimming to shore.

"Jea?" The feline looked back to see Professor Hunter standing on the shore with a flashlight. "What's going on?" He questioned. There was no agitation nor scorn in the snow leopard's voice, but one of concern and understanding. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry..." Jea said as her shoulders slumped. "I thought I..."

Kerr-Splash!

Jea let out a surprised yowl as she tumbled backwards into the water, the suddenness of something breaching the surface shocked both felines and caused both of them to stumble back. Though the professor was able to remain upright due to the fact that he wasn't knee deep in water, unlike Jea who momentarily forgot where she was. The two could only watch in stunned silence as a dark, waterlogged shadow rose from the lake, slowly making its way towards the two.

"Jea?" A familiar voice called out. "Is that you?" The shadow came closer to reveal a drenched but relieved Alex in the professor's flashlight. "Oh, thank gods that you were able to escape."

"Alex?" Jea asked, full of shock and awe as the otter came to stand in front of her.

"One and the same." Alex amiably said as he held his hand out to the wet feline. Jea grasped the offered hand and was hefted back to her feet, once standing she wrapped the otter in a tight hug.

"I thought that we lost you."

The two turn to see Aclide and Destiny coming up behind the professor, both of them looking glad to see the otter standing there. The two waded out of the water and the four students gave each other a group hug as the snow leopard watched just off to the side.

"Glad to have you back Mr. Fisher." Professor Hunter said as he clasped the otter's shoulders. "But tell me, what happened to you?"

"I don't fully know." Alex said as the four stepped back from each other. "One moment I was heading to try and open the cabin door, then the next... Something grabbed me and I remember hitting my head on the porch." Alex stopped for a moment to organize his thoughts and memories. "The next thing I remember was being dragged through the woods and what happened next... Gosh it seems so surreal."

"What happened?" Destiny pushed.

"I remember being dragged through the woods. To where, I don't know. But one minute I'm being dragged, then the next I'm not. When I looked up there was this figure engulfed in blue flames letting out this wail that made my skin crawl. It took me a minute that... thing didn't have hold of me and so I ran. I kept running till I got to the lake and I dove in."

"And you swam all the way over here?"

"Not a part of the Swim Team for nothing." Alex chuckled proudly as he thumped his chest to everyone's amusement. "Anyway, can we go home now? I just want a warm bed right now after tonight."

"Amen." Destiny chirped.

"First thing first, we're heading to the hospital." The Professor piped up. "The Three of you need to get checked out by a doctor to make sure that there was no lasting damage from tonight's events." The trio grumbled a little but agreed that they did need to be looked over by a professional and started to make their way back to the vehicles that they left by the road. Perry followed behind the three till he noticed that one of the students was still by the lake's edge. He stopped and turned to look at the fox. "Mr. Howells, is there anything wrong?" Aclide didn't answer right away. It looked like his focus was on scanning over the lake shore, namely where the camp and the Dustfall Woods was located on the other side. After a long moment of the fox not answering him, he spoke up again. "Mr. Howells?" Aclide was silent for another moment before turning back to the professor, the glow from his blue eye fading.

"Sorry professor." Aclide said as he started to move away from the shore. "I just needed to check something. I didn't mean to worry you."

Perry smiled knowingly, "It's alright, I understand." He said as the two walked back to the road where the others were waiting for them.