S3: “Listen! Did You Smell That?!” Ghost Stories

Angela (Barker) and Denny (Valentine) couldn’t make it.

Brian: Dr Will Wollen, General Medicine, 31.

Matt: Dr. Peter Venkman, Parapsychologist/Clairvoyant, 35.

Angela: Barker D’Amour, occultist detective/Clairvoyant.

Denny: Valentine (Val), wealthy explorer and lifelong New Yorker.

Tony: Klaus Winterbourne, New Age religion leader/Telekinesis.

Bill: Father Angelo Vincentini, 32. Alienist Priest/Medium.

Conversation between Carol and Jeffery (Residents of the Slater Institute)

Carol

Jeffery

Sunday, 12 May: “Jeff, come quick. There’s an expensive car pulling up. Maybe a new resident checking in. Wow, a car full. Is it safe to cram that many nut-cases into one car? At least we’ll have fresh conversation at the dinner table. I can see our handyman, Mr. Joseph Drummer, greeting them. Two of them are carrying medical bags. That must be one wacko they’re escorting. Let’s get downstairs to eavesdrop when they speak to our director, Dr. Yvonne Callisham.”

Dr. Callisham

Dr. Winslowe

Soon Jeff asking, “What are they saying?” Carol listening intently, “The curly-haired guy says he’s Dr. Venkman, head of the Parapsychology Department at Columbia University. They heard about Dr. Winslowe in Saurgerties looking for Graham (Tolhurst). Yvonne is explaining how we’re free to come and go as long as our bill is paid up. Thus, no guards or fenced gate. Seems they’re hoping to study us. I wonder if Venkman will search for our ghosts? ‘Come on out Chief Joseph Brant and say hello to the fellas.’ Boy, will they be disappointed when they realize it’s just the 3 of us. Not that Ted really counts. That carny fake is just hiding out here to avoid the police. ‘Guess your weight, guess your birthday.’ Yeah, after he sneaks a peek at your identification card.”

“The priest, Father Angelo, is asking about the treatment used here: drugs, scents, hypnosis, electroshock, or water-immersion. ELECTROSHOCK?! Dear God no, or I’d be checking out. Now she’s telling them about Dr. Nesbit’s dream machine stored upstairs in the attic. After he took that leave-of-absence to go explore Mink Hollow up in the Catskills. Just another person missing. Graham last month, Evan Bain before that; yeah right, sleepwalking. Uh oh, that long-haired weirdo is coming our way.”

It's an hour before Carol rejoins Jeffery, “So what did Klaus talk to you about? He gave me the creeps when I read his lustful thoughts. Just like Ted. Aren’t there any Christians left in the world? I got a headache listening to his mixed-up thoughts; he must be on LSD considering his jumbled mind. Hope I get a chance to talk to that priest that came along with them. Father Angelo could retire trying to absolve all the sins Klaus commits. Probably gave up listening to HIS confessions!”

Jeff absentmindedly twists his hair, “Klaus genuinely seemed interested in my dreams, especially when I mentioned the underground city. Blue lights, blue plants. He too has seen a blue city, but his was in flames.” Carol interrupting, “Oh yeah, I remember your city. Graham was telling Dr. Nesbit about it from his deep dreams. And before either of you, there was Miss Ashe talking about it.” Jeff continues, “Well, I was telling Klaus about the woman I dreamed of; her intense eyes, hair stacked in rings on her head. How she kept saying ‘one day we’ll rule the earth.’ When I described her robe covered in symbols, Klaus asked me to draw them for him.” Carol now interrupting, “Are you sure her hair stacked in rings? That sounds like Miss Ashe who left over 3 years ago. Another one who just wandered off.”

Carol continues, “Which reminds me. I saw the priest and Peter Venkman slip into one of the offices. I got close enough to hear. Too close; I could ‘hear’ Father Angelo’s thoughts! He actually made contact with one of our ghosts! He too saw your woman with intense eyes and ringed hair. She sounded pleasant and called herself Ashe. Offered to teach the priest. She talked about past lives but growing bored and moving on. Father grew scared at her implied possessing others. And I think she psychically attacked him! When he stepped out of the room he was sweating along the forehead while Mr. Venkman was excitedly exclaiming how her presence registered on his ghost detector.”

It’s already evening, after dinner, when Carol and Jeff get together again. Jeff apologizing, “I sure hope one of these fellas checks in. I have to leave in a week; dad says I HAVE to quit stalling and find a job. I’d hate to leave you all alone with just Ted. But then the way they ignored us at the dinner table.” Carol adding, “Deep into their own conversation as if we weren’t even there. Until Winslowe and Callisham sat down. But their minds didn’t shutdown. All their excitement at their test of the attic dream machine. Peter was left ‘watching-the-store’ (the only one with Electrical skills to operate the machine) as the others put on helmets to ‘take-a-trip-down-memory-lane.’”

“Klaus had the most vivid dreams of another city. All the men with forked beards. Of course Klaus hitting on ever woman he passed. That man needs to be castrated. Then Will donned a helmet and soon appeared near Klaus in the dream. Regal clothing as if ancient Rome but older. Way older. Then Father arrived in their dream as they all headed toward a cathedral to meet someone named Zelrathos. As they waited, Klaus learned the importance of the forked beards. Without one meant you shamed yourself. Hah, Klaus braided his beard into 3 chin-tails.”

Zelrathos

Arapthis

“Finally, Zelrathos arrived to introduce himself as ‘a remnant of a dream long ago in a realm called Lomar.’ How he died millennia ago but was projected into this dreamworld. This dream but an after-image of their once great civilization. How one named Arapthis failed in his duties to watch over all…distracted by the moon. Them attacked by Vormeez and Naf-kef creatures. Arapthis casting Lomar forward to save everyone. The moon overhead in their perpetual night, just like when he failed in his duties. Zelrathos mentioned others have visited the dreamworld: Argus, Leopold, and Brendon. They probably used yellow flowers as their gateway to travel in time and dreams.”

Carol chuckles, “Sorry. I had to laugh at the mental vision of them plucking flowers from fields surrounding the city. Only for their pockets to be empty when they awoke. Anyway, Will found a tutor to learn the Lomar language while Father studied Astronomy. Klaus sought out Arapthis up in a tower overlooking the city. Klaus babbled about his family lost in time; so, Arapthis offered to help IF Klaus would track down the other human visitors that were locked in the tower (by someone named Thetronis) at the time of the city falling. Apparently, Brendon is a key link in the dreamworld timeline. Using the flowers in the dreamworld allows one to travel the astral plane. And the crystal Klaus possesses can be used to store the minds of others. Anyway, weeks to those in their dreamworld turned out to only be 8 hours in our time.”

Another chuckle, “Klaus is such an open-book. Even Father can read his mind. The priest told Peter to disable the dream machine to prevent Klaus from slipping up there later to do his own thing. And I can ‘hear’ Klaus planning just that! Hah!”

Now it was Jeffery’s turn to reveal what he’d witnessed, “You’d gone to your room. With all the ghost stories, your priest held another seance. Peter powered up his detector that started flashing after 45 minutes. Sure enough, Chief Joseph showed up for everyone to see. Although Klaus discounted him as Chief Joseph; Indian features but dress and gear of a different time. Him just walking the hallway in his robes with that curved sword at his hip. Your Will tried to talk with him. Resorted to showing off a book that apparently had symbols that allowed them to pointy-talkie communicate. Klaus recognized some of the symbols as the ones I’d drawn for him. You know, the ones that dream-woman shared with me. I couldn’t tell if they learned anything before the chief walked thru the wall and vanished.”

“Speaking of walls, I think I’ve hit mine. Dead tired. See you in the morning. Don’t let the bed-bugs bite.” 

NEXT SESSION: https://rigglecoldfire.blogspot.com/2020/09/s4-egon-youre-missing-out-on-this.html