The Phantom Crystal

Providing Sources

Does everyone know who my parents are? Biting my lip, I nod with wide eyes.

Matilda tsks.

"Just as I feared. Your parents are very well-known throughout the Ghost Dimension. Some hold very savory feelings toward the two of them, some not so much. They are the only living humans to succeed in creating a portal between the realm of the living and the Ghost Dimension. Something that quite a few beings are not very pleased with."

I nod. Mom and Dad have their fair share of living opposers, people who believe that Mom and Dad are merely causing more trouble by trying to gain access to the Ghost Dimension. My eyes widen.

"Back in August, Mom's Portal worked, didn't it? And someone sabotaged it?"

Matilda glances at her companions before nodding.

"Yes. News traveled fast about that. And those who originate from the Ghost Dimension weren't too keen on that. So, a few imps and poltergeists interfered and sabotaged the device."

Oh, geez. Mom's going to be so angry when she finds out. Shivering, I tuck my hands into my armpits and shift from foot to foot.

"O-Okay, but why are you telling me this?"

Matilda purses her lips.

"Because I believe that there is someone here in Bemidji who can help you but—"

"But they aren't a big fan of my folks, gotcha," I finish, unease gnawing at my gut. "But you say that they might have more information on the Phantom and his crystal?"

Ester rests a hand on Matilda's arm, worry pinching at her features.

"Matilda, I don't know if this is a good idea. We have absolutely no idea how Max is going to react to Jack. Especially with the Phantom Crystal inside of him."

"And adding in who his parents are, we are just asking for a disaster, my dear," Martin adds, wringing his hands together. "The poor dear is obviously suffering enough with just the Phantom and his crystal, we shouldn't be sending him into any unnecessary danger."

Matilda glares at her companions, holding her head high so she can peer down her nose at them.

“And do the two of you have any better ideas? Because I personally can’t come up with a single one.” Matilda pushes her glasses back up her face. “If I knew of someone else who could help him, I would send him there, but right now Max is probably his best bet.”

Heart pounding, I step closer to the three ghosts, my hand clutching at the front of my shirt. Another harsh shiver hits me as the crystal pulses.

“Please,” I beg, desperation bleeding into my voice as my heart hammers away in my chest. “If you know someone who might be able to answer my questions, I’m willing to at least try.”

The trio exchanges a look, varying degrees of unease on their face. Ester tugs on Matilda’s arm, shooting me side glances in concern.

“What about, well, you know?” Ester asks quietly, vaguely gesturing. “I honestly think that he might know—“

“Have you lost your mind, Ester?” Matilda snaps, cutting the shorter librarian off. “If you’re worried about how Max is going to react to him, how do you think he might react to him?” The brunette librarian huffs. “No. At least Max won’t try to straight-up kill him if he finds out that Jack here has the Phantom’s crystal.”

Confusion swirls inside me as I watch the exchange between the two ghosts. Who are they talking about? Shoving that question to the back of my mind, I reach a handout, not really sure on what I’m reaching for.

“Please, I just need some answers. If there are people you know who can just explain to me a little more on who the Phantom is, that will help me out a lot.” And someone who won’t give me flowery answers. “I don’t want to be left in the dark when it feels like my entire being is going to be in danger every time I leave my dorm room.”

Matilda sighs and takes my hand. I blink at the icy touch and the sensation of my hand being covered cobwebs crawls across my skin but I refuse to let go. While the touch is strange, it is also very grounding for me right now. A tremor shakes my body and I clench my teeth to keep them from rattling.

“All right, calm down,” Matilda says, patting my hand as she tugs me a little closer. “The one we are talking about is Max. And we wouldn’t really call him a person. He is more of an entity. A sensation.”

As if sensing my confusion, Marvin appears on Matilda’s other side.

“What Matilda is trying to say, my dear boy, is that Max was never human. He is a poltergeist who lives in a small bookstore in the downtown area.”

My breath catches in my throat. A poltergeist? They want me to speak with a poltergeist? A poltergeist threw me across the room four days ago! And that was before all of this ‘Phantom’ stuff. And they don’t think he’s just going to straight-up attack me?

As if sensing my worry, Matilda squeezes my hand.

“I was working my way up to that reveal, Martin, so that I wouldn’t freak him out,” Matilda says stiffly before looking down at me. “But yes, Max is a poltergeist, meaning that he comes directly from the Ghost Dimension and would be able to provide far more information about the Phantom than any of us, having once been human, would be able to provide you.”

I worry my bottom lip. That does make sense. Find someone directly correlated to the source of my question. But it doesn’t mean that I’m overly happy about it. And if Mom, Dad, or Ian find out that I’m going out of my way to interact with a poltergeist, they’ll have my head. Clearing my throat, I ignore the pounding in my chest as the crystal pulses.

“And where can I find Max? You said he was in a bookstore?”

Marvin nods as he fixes his bow tie.

“Yes, a quaint little shop called Books & Me,” Marvin states, a soft look of longing flickering across his face before vanishing. “It is a few blocks away from the theatre house.”

I nod, mentally calculating just how far that might be.

“And what if he doesn’t want to talk to me?” I ask, knowing that not all poltergeists like having an audience around when they are active.

Ester offers me a thin smile.

“I don’t think you will have to worry about that,” she says. “Max is quite the attention seeker. So, you going out of your way to actually try and speak with him will probably make his day.”

A frown tugs on my lips as a thought hits me.

“If that’s the case, then why haven’t I heard about him before? There’s a paranormal group here on campus and I follow their social media but not a single post has mentioned anything about Books & Me or any poltergeist activity in the downtown area.”

Matilda shrugs.

“That we can’t tell you, but he is very active. Your best bet would be to swing around the bookshop close to 5 pm. Max enjoys causing trouble for the owners a few hours before close.”

So I should have enough time to drop off my bag after my Astrology class tomorrow and still reach the bookshop by 5. A surge of determination shoots through me and I squeeze Matilda’s hand once before releasing it.

“Thank you,” I say sincerely, grabbing my bag and shouldering it. “I really appreciate this. I honestly don’t think I was going to get anywhere by trying to use living human resources.” I smile at the three ghosts. “I really can’t tell you what kind of weight this lifts off of me just knowing that I might get some sort of answer about who the Phantom is.”

“Of course, my dear boy,” Marvin says as the three entities part to allow me to exit the alcove. “And, please, don’t be a stranger, come visit us down here again. I, for one, would love to know how your little chat with Max goes.”

Surprise hits me as Matilda and Ester nod in agreement and I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face.

“I will, I promise. And thanks again!” I say, waving and rushing for the stairs.

My legs tremble as I take two at a time, but this time I know for a fact that it has nothing to do with the chill of the crystal. I take a moment to collect myself when I reach the top of the stairs, smoothing down my hair and quickly tugging my jacket on.

The top level of the library is almost at barren as the basement with the only people there being the students who work the desk. None of them lift their gaze as I walk by and my heart leaps in excitement as I reach the doors.

It’s time to get some answers.