Monday, August 1, 2011

Endless Searching

A Haunted Soul  Episode 4


The ghost found himself sitting on the same boulder where he appeared at the beginning of each night since his death. It never mattered where he was at the end of the night before when he disappeared. He always reappeared at this same spot every time. He was sure now that this must be a definite sign that his search for the afterlife must be here outside the castle.

He began to look around him for a clue to a possible gateway or something that might lead him to the promised great beyond. From his perch on the boulder in front of the castle he examined the cobblestone road leading straight from the castle doors and out towards the lake in the distant front. At the lake the road made an abrupt turn to the right and went on out through the forest at the side.

On each side of the grounds was the edge of the forest, which had a neatly lined border of trees. When he was alive the ghost would go through the forest to the left to get to the place where he would go fishing and hunting. Those were his two favorite pastimes. He would usually go hunting with a group of men he would choose for each trip. That would include a few of his favorite servants and a randomly chosen man from the town. He did this so he might get to know some of these people better.

But fishing. Fishing was his, and his alone. He remembered how he loved to go out to the small river that emptied into the lake and just sit there alone for a whole day by himself. That seemed like heaven to him. All of his cares and worries were left behind. He would go there whenever he wasn't busy... Wait! Heaven?

That could be it! Maybe the gateway to Heaven was in his favorite place! That must be it! The ghost laughed out loud with joy. It made so much sense that his favorite place would be where he would find the passageway to the afterlife. He immediately hopped down off the big rock and ran to the small pathway that lead into the forest on the left. He just knew that he was finally going to leave this state of limbo behind!

As he got to the edge of the forest, the ghost ran right into something soft and invisible, and he fell down backwards. He decided that he must have hit a tree branch or something. He stood back up and cautiously walked back towards the forest edge, this time holding his arms out to feel for anything that might be in his way. When he got back to the edge he felt something soft in the air once again. This was no tree branch.

The ghost felt something like a soft cushion right in midair. It felt as if the air had turned thick. He pushed further and the resistance slowly increased. The further he went, the stronger it got. It was some sort of invisible barrier. He quickly realized that he could not push through this barrier. The path was barred to him.

He thought the solution to this would be easy. He would just step aside and get to the path from a few paces to the side. He began to step, feeling for the edge of the barrier. He thought it should stop here any time now. But it didn't. He soon realized that the barrier was completely barring his way.

The ghost looked up to the sky and howled, "No!!! There must be a way! I have to get out of here! I don't deserve this!" He turned and quickly ran up and down the line of the forest, looking for a place where the barrier would end. But it went on for the whole distance of the castle grounds.

The barrier was also on the other side where the road went out through the forest. There was no way out for him. The lake bordered the front of the castle grounds, so there was no way out that way either. He had been worried before, but now the ghost was very upset and afraid. He had waited patiently for some sign of Heaven, but there was nothing. He was stranded here in this state of limbo and he didn't know why. Now he just wanted to get out. He felt as if his salvation depended upon his escape. He had to keep searching.

16 comments:

  1. @Christy @ scrink.com
    Despair is maybe what being a ghost is all about. Thanks for your comment.

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  2. How can I get a message to the ghost? I have an idea I'd like him to consider.

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  3. @John | English Wilderness
    I think part of the ghost's problem is that there is no one there to help him. He was a lonely man in life, and now even more lonely in death. Even though it's too late for the ghost, I'd love to hear your idea.

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  4. Hi,
    Feel so sorry for the ghost :(
    maybe he has to do some quest b4 the barrier is lifted.

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  5. Ratty: I suspect the ghost is an artificial intelligence inside a computer simulation. I'd like to see how he reacts to the suggestion :-)

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  6. Hi Ratty,
    Passing thru, episode 5 quick hehe

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  7. @Umihoney
    Ghosts are usually a strong focus of sorrow, and I feel sorry for him too. He may have to do something, but it might be a long time before he understands what that is.

    The episodes of this story are posted two weeks after the last. This is to give everyone a chance to read them, and to give me time to write more stories. Episode 5 will come the Monday after next. I wish I could make them quicker.
    -

    @John | English Wilderness
    In a way that could be true because the ghost is an artificial intelligence in my brain. But in the story he is what he appears to be, a ghost, lonely and trapped in this world. His living world was the end of the Middle Ages, so he wouldn't understand what a computer is. Your artificial intelligence premise would be an excellent idea for a story though.

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  8. I have posted the scheduled dates of the episodes of this story in the top toolbar of the blog. I'm tempted to make the time between episodes shorter, but I don't think I would be able to write my stories fast enough to keep up.

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  9. feel sad for the ghost, glad i've stumbled to your blog through entrecard, now i'll regularly visit this to read more stories

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  10. feel sad for the ghost, glad i've stumbled to your blog through entrecard, now i'll regularly visit this to read more stories

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  11. @Filipino Recipes
    Thanks for visiting. I feel sad for the ghost too. There are many more episodes with this ghost. At the end we'll all finally get to see if he has a happy ending or if he finds out something even sadder.

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  12. Hmmm...The Ghost must have some unfinished business to take care of before he can go to the light???

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  13. @Jean
    That might be. Hopefully it's not just that the ghost is right about being forgotten.

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  14. Been a while since I was on the computer...so I get to read the next chapter straight away!!

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  15. @Allotments4you
    That has to be much better than every two weeks. I wish I could post them faster. I'm always excited when I get done writing something, and I'm eager for someone to read it. This way gives me time to write more stories though, :)

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