Jimmy Stone's Ghost Town

by Scott Neumyer

  When the smoke cleared, we all took a few seconds to catch our breath and gather our thoughts before any of us even moved. It had been one of the craziest days any of us had ever experienced, and it didn't look like the coming days were going to be any less crazy.

  "Well," I said to David and Gasp as I cracked the slightest smile. "One down. Six to go."

  David and Gasp sighed heavily before we all started chuckling just a little. Then the chuckling turned into laughter and before we knew it the three of us were bent over in full-on belly laughs, resting our hands on our knees, and petting Trex on the head.

  "Only six," said Gasp and laughed even harder. "No problem!"

  "Six is nothing, right?" asked David as even he got in on the joke.

  And if it weren't for Trex interrupting us with an enormous echoing bark, we probably would never even have noticed that the tree we were once standing under - that perfect little tree in the midst of such imperfection here in Ghost Town Cemetery - had now transformed itself into one of the tallest, straightest trees we'd ever seen.

  In fact, we'd only seen one that tall and that straight before. And, just like that tree we'd seen previously, this one was glowing too.

  "Transport Tree," I said loudly and moved toward the middle of the glowing circle. "She must be making it easy for us this time."

  "Time to find your second item, Jimmy," said Gasp. "And this is where I leave you, sir."

  "But I thought--"

  "I know what you thought, Jimmy. And, if you remember correctly, I told you earlier that you won't know me as Gasp the Ghost in any of the other realms. We must change our identity each and every time we move."

  I lowered my head and looked down at my shoes. I was just beginning to get used to Gasp.

  "But don't worry, sir," Gasp said as he smiled toward me and David. "I'll be there. You just won't recognize me, but trust me. You'll know it's me when the time is right."

  I smiled and turned my head back up for Gasp to see. I looked him straight in the eye and nodded. I'm sure he knew, with that nod, how much I appreciated everything he'd done for us here in Ghost Town.

  "So where are we going now?" asked David as he stepped closer to the tree, Trex's leash tightly in his hand. "Where do we need to go to find that second item?"

  "Let's take a look," I said and moved in as close to the Transport Tree as I could.

  I scanned the bark for a few seconds before I saw exactly what I was looking for.

  "Here," I said pointing to the two letters emblazoned on the tree's surface. "This is how we go into Ghost Town. I traced the GT on the tree and next thing I knew I was on the floor in the middle of some room in Ghost Town."

  "So," David said, "like I asked you before. Where are we going now?"

  I looked closely at the letters and tried to think about where they might lead before I answered David.

  "Honestly," I said, "I have no idea."

  The letters WW stared me right in the face. I lifted my finger to the very top of the first W and placed it in the corner.

  "But I do know this," I said as I started to trace the letters on the Transport Tree. "Wherever we are going, it's going to be quite the adventure."

  And as I traced the top right corner of the second W, there was a loud clap of thunder and a quick flash of light.

  And before we knew it, we were gone.

  For now, at least.

  The End.