The Shade Riders and the Dreadful Ghosts

by Bxerk

  Ignoring the pain in her ankle, Nova ran to a window on the

  opposite side of the garage. The cats had clawed their way through the screen long ago. She tried to open it. Locked.

  “Damn it, Mom!” We’re in the middle of nowhere. Who’s going to rob us?

  Her only choice was to run around to the other side, but that meant running through the ghost and she hated doing that. She tried to skirt around it, but it kept in front of her. She dashed through the ghost and was suddenly - sick with dread.

  She limped to the window. She was able to lift it open a half inch-- at least it was unlocked. Nova looked for something to stand on so she could lever it the rest of the way up. There was nothing.

  The ghost floated toward her and threw the “Nova” ghost against the garage. When the victim ghost hit the building, it evaporated, moaning in pain.

  “Holy chaos!” In desperation, Nova jumped and pulled herself through the window just as the ghost was grabbing for her. Nova slammed the window shut, ran inside, and never looked back.

  She raced into her bedroom. Her sister was snoring under the covers. Nova scrambled over to the lamp table, grabbed her Walkie Talkie and ran into the closet.

  “Come in, over, over. Anyone there? Over, over.” She shook the radio. Please someone answer. Finally, the speaker crackled, and Benny's voice came over the line, "Hey, what's up?"

  "Two ghosts had me in their sights again. I was in the back pasture with my horse, and I saw… I saw myself getting killed again.”

  There was silence on the other end.

  "Benny, I'm so scared. I can't get those ghost butchering thoughts out of my head."

  "Take some deep breaths, Nova. Did they come into the house?"

  She waited. All she heard was Scott’s muffled alternative rock music playing upstairs and Wilha’s snoring.

  “No, I don’t think so. Not yet.”

  “Benny, I don’t know if I can sleep tonight…”

  “I’m thinking, Nova. But… have patience. I need to try more experiments. I have a sort of idea but don’t want to promise anything. Let me know if they harass you more tonight. At least I can talk you down, I guess. Now, I just want to get some more sleep. Over.”

  “All right, and thanks. Over and out.”

  Nova sighed. She put the Walkie Talkie back and sat on the edge on the bed. Takeesha, Max Kim, and Benny were lucky. They weren’t being hounded by ghosts and could actually get some sleep. Nova made a fist and wanted to punch the wall. Why wouldn’t the ghosts leave her alone? Ten minutes dragged by and still no ghost. Nova crawled into bed and covered herself with some blankets. She fell into a fitful sleep in her bed next to Wilhelmina.

  "Nova? Are you awake?" Leandra’s bright voice sounded close by. Nova groaned and then her eyes flew open. She ran for the closet, closed the door, grabbed the watch and placed it to her mouth.

  "Yes, I'm awake, but I’m tired, and I'm scared."

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there, but I was busy before,” Leandra said, “but I'm here now and, I'll help where I can. I want you to bring your horse over to my house as soon as you can. She is weaned isn't she?"

  "Yes, she is weaned. And Leandra she has wings." Nova whispered the last part then peeked out the door and watched Wilhelmina to see if she was still asleep. Her sister continued to snore and rolled over away from Nova.

  "Yes, I know. She’s a gift to you from people who support you in Ordin, the good Neanderthals. How soon can you bring her to my house? I live a couple of miles from you."

  "How about ten this morning? Can my friends come?"

  "That will be fine. And please bring your friends. I live at the fire number N4567 on Barnacle Road. And Nova, I can’t wait to show you something marvelous."

  Now curious, Nova got up and squinted out the window. All of the horses in the catch pen were milling around looking for grain or hay in the dim morning light. Some horses were drinking out of the water trough. Nova got a good look at Shade's body.

  No, wings.

  She had to wonder if what she saw last night was real. Maybe that was why she ended up with the other horses every night. If it were a night thing, it would make her secret much easier to keep.

  Chapter 13 Pathways

  Nova, Takeesha, Max Kim, and Benny plod and wheel over to Leandra's long driveway with Shade in tow. They couldn’t see any buildings from the road. “No trespassing” signs were tacked to all the trees near the road going down the driveway.

  "Should we even go down there?" Nova said. She seems pretty serious about trespassers.”

  "Hey, she invited us!" Benny rolled forward ten yards ahead.

  Suddenly, Shade lunged forward, tugging on the lead that Max Kim was holding. He slid on the loose gravel making dust. “Shade wants to see what’s down there too.”

  Nova grabbed the lead as Shade dragged by them and pulled her up.

  "Come on," Takeesha said, as she started down the path after Benny.

  Nova sighed. "Fine, let's go."

  They meander for about twenty minutes, keeping an eye on the oak, hickory, willow, maple, and box elders near the edges of the woods. Nova’s noticed her ankle felt better, with just an occasional twinge of pain.

  “I wonder how long this driveway is,” Max Kim said.

  “What if she gave us the wrong address?” Takeesha asked.

  Butterflies fluttered their wings in Nova’s stomach. She wanted to meet Leandra again so bad. It was like meeting a movie star. Squirrels, chipmunks, birds, and rabbits scampered and flitted among the trees and bushes.

  Nova felt they must have walked a mile without seeing any buildings of any kind. Shade pulled hard on the lead ropes, eager to run up the driveway. The ropes dug into Nova’s and Max Kim's hands. Good thing they wore gloves-- otherwise, they would have raw red welts covering their hands.

  Shade, ears forward, shook the horse flies off of her body, and neighed loudly. The Shade Riders came to a clearing. The grassy area had a vegetable and herb garden and a few dirt paths meandering in all directions to the left of them. No sign of a house.

  "What, does she live in a hollow stump?" Nova said. Then an invisible door opened just enough to let out two cats. Light escaped from inside. Nova thought she saw paneling on the walls. One cat was solid black, and the other cat was a calico. The cats stared at Nova and her friends then panicked and scampered in different directions.

  Nova wrinkled her nose. “I smell oranges with strawberries.”

  Benny motored up to where he thought the door was and felt around with his hands. When he reached forward, his arms disappeared up to his shoulders.

  "Holy chaos, Benny!” Nova said. “Are you all right?"

  “Yeah, I think so.” Benny pulled his arms out and examined them. Both looked normal.

  The door opened, and Leandra poked her head out. "Oh, there you are, darlings. Come on in."

  "Where should I put Shade?" Nova asked.

  "Oh, tie her to that U-shaped tree branch over there," Leandra said, pointing.

  Nova tied Shade up securely, then stepped inside the house, which indeed had paneled walls with pictures of deer, bears and owls on framed canvas. Nova could also smell that Leandra had been cooking. Leandra put a plate of finger sandwiches and red juice on the coffee table in front of a flowery overstuffed- couch. Wall-to-wall green carpeting on the floor, Nova looked closer, it wasn’t carpeting at all but closely cut grass. Small manicured bushes stood out against the paneling. Where a ceiling would be, blue, cloudy skies stared back at Nova. Yet tables, chairs, couches, and recliners filled the living room. On the table in the kitchen sat a pile of ‘no trespassing’ signs, and on top of those was a box of nails and a hammer.

  “Make yourselves at home,” Leandra said. Nova fidgeted as she stood there. Her friends didn’t take a seat either. No gadgets or electronics of any kind were within view. The interior of Leandra’s house felt like a park.

  Leandra looked around. “I grew up on a sheep farm in New
Zealand. I guess you can't take the country out of me."

  Nova nodded and put her hand on a wooden rocking chair.

  “I know how you feel. I love our farm.”

  “Country life isn’t for the likes of me.” Benny wheeled forward into the large living room.

  Takeesha still stood in the kitchen doorway. “One day I’ll be getting a horse, so our family needs farm land. We hope the government will finally give us some soon. We’ve been on the list for five years so far. You know what I mean?”

  Nova and her friends slowly took chairs around the room – they all seemed real enough -- as the conversation continued about farms. They did not take any food or drink Leandra offered. Then the conversation changed.

  “I saw you do some sort of magic in the grocery store, Nova said. “What were you doing with your hands?” She tried to mimic what Leandra had done.

  "Oh, that,” Leandra said. “Once my parents put me to bed each night, three Neanderthal magic users took me to Ordin and taught me a thing or two about logical magic."

  Max Kim, Benny, and Takeesha leaned forward in their seats.

  "What's logical magic?" Nova and Takeesha said at the same time. They looked at each other and laughed.

  "Logical magic uses scientific methods rather than ESP, telekinesis or telepathy," Leandra said.

  “Are you part Neanderthal?” Nova asked.

  “I’m Modern Human for the most part but have Neanderthal blood. That’s the only reason I can do magic.”

  "I was wondering if you could help me with my own magical powers," Nova said.

  Takeesha nodded her head. "Can you help me too?"

  Benny and Max Kim rolled their eyes.

  "I can help Nova, but I'm sorry, I can't help you, Takeesha."

  Takeesha let out a huge sigh, falling backward on the couch next to Max Kim.

  “Now, Takeesha, don’t pack a sad.” Leandra shook her finger and grinned. “I was given Neanderthal blood to help mentor Nova, so that she can fight the uprising going on in Ordin. Those are her people and she has hybrid vigor that is more powerful than the Idealite gods.”

  “Hang on,” Nova said, “I think we need to go back to the beginning. What is Ordin?”

  “Okay, it’s one of the last Matriarchal societies in existence. They haven’t been changed, yet. The Seven Sages keep the people there, ruling with consensus in the cloud forest. It went by many names in the past like Mount Olympus or Valhalla. The inhabitants used to be considered gods like Thor. Or Hercules.”

  When she said Hercules, she said it with a slight emphasis and stared into Nova’s eyes.

  “It’s very beautiful there with waterfalls, kettle moraines, valleys and lots of wildlife. Also, a Speaker and a Prime Minister is all the government there is. Most of the people are hunter-gatherers.”

  A wild turkey jumped, wings flapping, into Leandra's house and looked around the living room.

  Nova sat up. “Dear Vulcan.”

  But the turkey didn't act afraid at all, as though it couldn’t see the people in the house. None of The Shade Riders moved. A short blond man-a hunter- followed close behind in bright orange carrying a shotgun. He must have lost the bird when it entered the house because when he saw the bird, he started back like he’d just stepped on a snake.

  The turkey saw him and jumped, flapping furiously, and ran quickly through the invisible walls and disappeared from view. The hunter rubbed his eyes and blinked. Nova could only guess it seemed as though the turkey disappeared again. It seemed the hunter could not see them, as he would have said something if he did.

  Leandra sighed. "The hunters just don't know how to read my ‘no trespassing’ signs. Okay, no one makes a sound."

  The hunter leveled his gun and started to follow the turkey like he was going to shoot at any minute. Leandra took some purple powder out of a blue velvet pouch on the bookcase, followed on the heels of the hunter, and blew the powder off her palm and into the hunter’s ear.

  "What's the matter? Can't you read my ‘no trespassing’ signs?" she said in an American accent.

  The hunter turned white, lowered the weapon, swallowed hard and said, "Peggy is that you?"

  "No, this is not your friend's game," Leandra said. "Leave the premises or I'm calling the cops."

  The hunter ran out of the house. From the kitchen window, Nova watched him run down the driveway. The kids looked at each other a moment then burst out laughing.

  "Come, I want to show you something," Leandra said back to her New Zealand accent. She waved her hand.

  Still chatting about what happened, the kids followed her out the front door. Leandra showed them the dirt paths.

  "These are my ley lines that I send all my bad magic down," said Leandra, "They’re safe to walk down if you want to experience something new and different."

  "I'll go," Max Kim said and started down a path.

  "If the path is wide enough I'll go too," Benny said.

  "The paths will accommodate you. You should have no trouble."

  Max Kim sauntered down the path. Every step he took created fractals at his feet. He shambled about thirty yards over a hill, then Nova couldn't see him anymore.

  “Go down the same path as Max Kim if you want to see something really strange,” Leandra said to Benny.

  Benny followed.

  As soon as Benny was out of earshot, Leandra grabbed Nova’s shoulders. “Listen. Ralf, the Speaker of the Idealites from Ordin, is your father, your real father. And he has been controlled. His bones were knocked out, and a ghost has been forced into his body.”

  “What?” Nova said. “What do you mean? My father is dead.”

  “No, he’s not, but he will be soon.”

  Nova bit her nails. “We have to help him, Leandra.”

  “That’s why you’re here. Ahlon, the Prime Minister, wants to make Ordin into a Patriarchal society and rule the Neanderthals. Then order them to kill the Modern Human people. He was hoping we would die of stupidity from the superstitions, like with the witch trials that they’ve been injecting into our world for decades now. But it’s taking too long, so he wants to hurry it along. Also Floret one of The Seven Sages is leading an uprising against Ahlon. There will be a deadly war, and we’ve got to stop it. Now pay attention to what I will show you with these paths.”

  Max Kim came back up the trail, but it seemed he didn't see Benny. He pranced right through Benny’s body as though he was a ghost. Benny, apparently not seeing Max Kim, continued down the path. He wheeled over the hill and was gone. Max Kim approached, waving to the three women waiting near the start for him. “Where’s Benny?”

  Leandra pointed behind him to where Benny came back over the hill with a confused look on his face. He saw Max Kim, laughed and pointed at him.

  "That was weird!" Max Kim grinned and scratched his head. "How did Benny use the same path I did, and I didn't even run into him?"

  Benny wheeled up to the group.

  "I chased after you for a whole hour and I could never catch up to you. What was the deal with that?"

  "You were only on the path for a few minutes,” Takeesha said.

  "But my watch tells me that I've been moving for an hour, and it feels that way," Benny said.

  "You'll have to change your watch back,” Leandra said. “It was all caused by the path."

  "Wow, that's amazing," Nova tried to jump up and down but found her ankle still hurt a bit.

  "Why didn't I see Benny on the same path?" Max Kim said again.

  "It's just my bad magic affecting everything on the path," Leandra said. "Now on to other things." Leandra traipsed over to where Shade was tied up and lead her to the path.

  "Nova take her down the path and hold tight. She will get much stronger as you go."

  Nova didn’t like the sound of that. She remembered how Max Kim and she could hardly hold her coming down the driveway.

  “I think I’m going need help. Max Kim and Takeesha can you please come with me?” Nova’s frien
ds grabbed hold of the halter and lead rope and pull her down the path. To Nova’s surprise, her horse began to grow until she became a full sized mare. When she came back to Benny and Leandra Nova couldn’t stop grinning. She could ride her horse now. Training with weight on her back could officially start. She could not wait. Nova tied Shade back up to the tree branch.

  “This is so clash. Just look at her! She’s beautiful!” Nova jumped without thinking. Her still sore ankle made her wince.

  Benny was studying the mare and grinning."How long does the effect last?"

  "About three hours," Leandra said. "If you want to reverse the effect… Nova go back down the path." Nova, Takeesha, and Max Kim file down the path again with Shade. She turned into her filly form again.

  “Let’s have some lunch, okay?”

  Nova tied Shade to the tree branch, and they strolled inside the house. If you could call it a house. And if you could call it inside.

  Wildlife roamed freely without harm as they ate lunch. Leandra had prepared finger sandwiches with chicken, Mandarin orange spread, and strawberry juice. By the time they were ready to leave, Nova was ecstatic.

  The Shade Riders left and traveled back to Nova’s farm. Nova soon waved goodbye to her friends as they left for home with their parents.

  Later, Nova brushed out Shade, gave her some grain, and put her out to pasture.

  Her father was alive, and she was going to help save him.

  Chapter 14 Nocturnal Ned

  After school the following Monday, Nova could hardly wait for her mother to come home so they could use Nocturnal Ned’s half price off coupon for The Psychic Experience. Her mom had said she wanted to show Nova something at Ned’s. Nova had no idea what.

  As soon as her mom walked through the door, they hopped into the vet truck, drove to town, and came to the strip mall. They left the truck and looked over the various psychics services -- a ghost hunter service, an intuitive coaching service, a clairvoyant service, and Nocturnal Ned’s spiritual service.

  Mom put a hand on Nova’s shoulder. “Nova, I thought we could take the opportunity to speak to, Chayton. What do you think?”