The Golden Era of The Argentum Hotel
Once, The Argentum Hotel stood as a glittering beacon of opulence, the heart of high society in the roaring 1920s. It was where the elite gathered to dance under crystal chandeliers, where whispered secrets and grand fortunes intertwined during extravagant galas. The most infamous of these was the Silver Gala of 1935, a night that began with the clinking of champagne glasses and ended in a nightmare no one could have predicted.
The Silver Gala Incident
At the height of the celebration, with the grand ballroom alive with laughter and music, something sinister stirred beneath the surface. The heavy ballroom doors, adorned with intricate silver filigree, sealed themselves shut, trapping the guests inside. Panic spread through the crowd, but there was no escape. Hours later, when the doors finally creaked open, the ballroom was silent. Half the attendees were found dead, their bodies twisted in unnatural poses, and the rest had simply vanished without a trace.
At the center of the mystery was Alfred Argentum, the enigmatic owner of the hotel. He had long been rumored to dabble in the occult, but nothing had ever been proven. Alfred himself disappeared along with his guests, leaving behind a legacy of dark whispers and speculation. Had he attempted some forbidden ritual that spiraled out of control? Or was he merely a victim of something darker that he couldn’t contain?
After the incident, The Argentum Hotel’s glory faded into shadow. The once-grand halls fell into decay, and rumors of hauntings began to spread. The spirits of the missing, it was said, still wandered the corridors, their restless souls searching for answers.
For decades, the hotel stood abandoned, its windows dark and its story whispered in hushed tones. But time, as it often does, softened the edges of tragedy. In a bold move, a new owner sought to restore the hotel to its former splendor. However, as renovations began, so too did the disturbances. Workers encountered unexplainable accidents—tools malfunctioned, scaffolds collapsed, and a few workers even disappeared. Whether they fled out of fear or for another reason remains a mystery to this day.
The hotel’s ominous history once again made headlines, and the stories sparked an immediate wave of curiosity. Paranormal enthusiasts and ghost hunters flocked to The Argentum Hotel, eager to uncover the dark secrets lurking within its haunted halls. However, it wasn’t long before some of them also began to disappear—vanishing just like those who came before, leaving behind only more questions and deepening the hotel’s dark legacy.
The Arrival of the Ghost Hunters
Drawn by curiosity and the promise of unraveling the hotel’s dark past, four ghost hunters—each renowned in their own field—were among those who couldn’t resist the pull of the Argentum Hotel. Each had their own reasons for answering the call, their own personal motivations driving them to step into the haunted halls.
Some were driven by duty, others by the thirst for knowledge, and some simply sought the thrill of facing the unknown. Yet, none of them knew that their paths were about to converge in ways that would change them forever.
John – The Hunter
John came from a long line of hunters, a family that had been tracking ghosts and demons for generations. His tools were ancient relics, passed down through the ages, each one designed to help him track and neutralize paranormal forces. But his most valuable weapon was the Blade of Severance, an artifact said to have been forged with one singular purpose: to destroy the cursed objects that bound spirits to the physical realm. In the presence of possessed objects or entities, the Blade would glow faintly with a blue light, signaling its readiness to sever the dark ties that held spirits captive.
By John’s side was always his loyal dog, Grim, a companion who could sense the presence of the supernatural long before John’s relics picked up the trail. Grim had an uncanny ability to detect paranormal disturbances, making him an invaluable partner in their ghost-hunting missions.
When John read about The Argentum Hotel in a newspaper, and the mysterious disappearances surrounding the Silver Gala Incident, he immediately suspected that a powerful cursed object was behind the haunting. He believed the key to ending the haunting lay in finding and destroying that object, likely hidden deep within the hotel. Armed with the Blade of Severance and his ancestral relics, John prepared for whatever dark forces awaited him.
Valerie – The Gadget Queen
Valerie was the cutting-edge tech genius of the ghost-hunting world. From a young age, she had been fascinated by the technology her parents developed, as they specialized in ghost-hunting devices. Their work laid the foundation for Valerie’s passion, and she took it to new heights with her own inventions. Her latest creation, the EctoBoy, was a remarkable combination of essential ghost-hunting tools: an EMF reader, Spirit Box, and other paranormal detection devices—all in one compact, high-powered unit.
The escalating reports from The Argentum Hotel—strange accidents, ghostly apparitions, and bizarre sounds—piqued her curiosity. The hotel’s high paranormal activity made it the perfect place to test her tech.
For Valerie, this was more than just another haunting—it was a field test for her gadgets. Confident that her technology could outpace the old-fashioned ghost-hunting methods, she set out to prove once and for all that tech was the future of the supernatural field. She was certain the hauntings were caused by residual energy left from the Silver Gala Incident, and she planned to neutralize it with her advanced gear, continuing the legacy her parents had started.
Ezekiel – The Occult Expert
Ezekiel was a man who walked the line between the material world and the supernatural, relying on his deep knowledge of ancient magic and rituals. A figure of mystery, trusted by few but respected by those who knew of his abilities, Ezekiel had seen more than most in the world of the arcane.
It was in a place known as Eclipse where Ezekiel first caught wind of the Argentum Hotel’s growing reputation. Eclipse wasn’t the kind of bar one stumbled upon—it was the place where those who dabbled in the mystical arts gathered, a sanctuary for whispered conversations about forbidden knowledge, powerful spells, and supernatural phenomena. The air in Eclipse was thick with energy, the walls adorned with relics and symbols from countless magical traditions. It was a place where secrets were traded as casually as drinks.
On the day Ezekiel entered Eclipse, the room buzzed with talk of the latest headlines. The haunting at The Argentum Hotel had piqued the interest of many, but no one could agree on what was truly behind it. Whispers of an old, unfinished ritual surfaced in hushed conversations, and Ezekiel’s attention sharpened when he overheard a few fragments—a grand event gone terribly wrong, dark forces unleashed, and a powerful curse tied to the hotel’s tragic history.
Ezekiel didn’t yet know all the details, but one thing was clear: whatever dark forces had been awakened during the infamous Silver Gala were not finished. Something was building, waiting to be completed. Armed with his ritual tools and ancient knowledge, he knew that the only way to stop the haunting was to sever the curse’s link to the material world once and for all. It was the only way to ensure the safety of anyone who dared enter the hotel’s haunted halls.
Maya – The Psychic Medium
Maya had always been attuned to the world beyond, her psychic abilities manifesting from a young age. As a telepathic medium, she could hear the voices of the dead and feel their emotions. Over the years, her powers had grown, allowing her to create mental barriers to shield herself and others from the influence of malevolent spirits.
Long before the news broke, Maya had felt the pull of The Argentum Hotel. The spirits trapped within its walls called to her, their pain and confusion ever-present. Among the voices, one stood out above all others—The Silver Lady, a figure whose sorrow resonated with a strange, powerful intensity. Unlike the other spirits, she seemed more than just a victim of the hotel’s tragedy. Her presence was imbued with a unique force, as though her fate was deeply connected to the darkness that had consumed the Silver Gala.
For Maya, the haunting wasn’t just about confronting angry spirits—it was about understanding them, helping them find peace. With her telepathic connection to the dead and her mental defenses ready, Maya prepared to confront The Silver Lady, knowing that unraveling her story could be the key to ending the hotel’s curse once and for all.
The First Meeting in the Hotel
The lobby of The Argentum Hotel was a dimly lit, cold expanse of forgotten grandeur. The ornate chandeliers, long since abandoned to time, hung overhead like relics of a past life. As John stepped through the grand doors, his faithful dog Grim sniffed the air cautiously. The weight of the place settled heavily on his shoulders as his eyes scanned the decayed interior. He knew he wasn’t alone in his mission.
As John moved deeper into the lobby, he spotted a woman crouched by the reception desk, setting up an array of gadgets. It was Valerie, who barely glanced at him as she continued adjusting her EctoBoy. The soft hum of her device filled the quiet space, and John simply nodded, acknowledging her presence. They both knew why they were there, but neither was interested in conversation. Instead, they worked in silence, preparing for what was to come.
Moments later, Maya arrived, her expression serious as she stepped into the lobby, her psychic senses already overwhelmed by the trapped souls within the hotel. She glanced briefly at John and Valerie before turning her attention to the upper floors, where the sorrowful cry of The Silver Lady beckoned to her.
Without exchanging more than a few words, the hunters went their separate ways, each determined to handle the situation in their own way.
John, with Grim leading the way, ventured deeper into the hotel’s lower levels. The air grew colder as they descended, the oppressive weight of the past pressing down on them. Grim growled softly, his nose twitching as they neared an old playroom. The faint sound of children’s laughter echoed from within, distorted and eerie, as if playing on a broken record.
Two ghostly figures materialized before them—twin children, their pale faces emotionless, and their eyes empty voids. John could feel the unnatural energy binding them to the room, not through sight but through the weight in the air—an ancient curse radiating from their presence. They were trapped by something, likely a cursed object hidden nearby.
The twins stepped closer, their movements slow and deliberate, their forms flickering in and out like a dying flame. Grim growled, his hackles raised, sensing the danger before they attacked. John immediately reached for an amulet hanging from his neck, an artifact passed down through his family, known for warding off dark spirits.
“Will you play with us?” one of the twins whispered, their voices blending into one, sickly sweet and haunting.
John tightened his grip on the Blade of Severance, feeling its cold power in his hand, but he knew brute force alone wouldn’t be enough. He glanced at the blade, expecting its faint blue glow to signal the presence of a cursed object, but there was nothing—no sign of the blade reacting to the spirits. That meant whatever was binding the twins was not immediately within reach.
As the twins lunged toward him, their ethereal hands stretched out, John raised the glowing amulet, casting a protective shield around him and Grim. The sigil on the amulet flared to life, momentarily halting the spectral children in their tracks.
The twins recoiled, but their ghostly forms shimmered with anger. They would not relent.
“I’m not here to play,” John said, his voice steady as ever. “I’m here to set you free.”
But knowing the blade hadn’t reacted, John realized he needed to rethink his strategy- perhaps the cursed object lay deeper within the hotel…
Slowly, he retreated, keeping the amulet’s protection between him and the spirits.
Maya had been drawn to the upper floors, the sorrowful cry of The Silver Lady echoing in her mind. The spirit’s pain was palpable, a deep well of grief and loss that tugged at Maya’s heart.
As she ascended the grand staircase, the temperature dropped sharply, and the air grew thick with moisture. At the top of the stairs, The Silver Lady appeared, her form flickering like a candle in the wind. Her long, flowing gown was tattered and stained, and her eyes, hollow and empty, locked onto Maya’s.
Maya reached out with her mind, trying to communicate with the spirit. “I know you’re in pain,” she said softly. “I’m here to help you.”
But The Silver Lady’s sorrow quickly turned to rage. Maya sensed it—she wasn’t merely a spirit trapped by grief, she was bound by a dark, malevolent force. The energy clinging to her was thick, oppressive, twisting her pain into uncontrollable fury. Her mouth opened in a silent scream, and the air around Maya began to vibrate with an unnatural energy. This was no ordinary spirit—this was a banshee, a harbinger of death, her wail corrupted by the dark magic that held her prisoner.
The banshee’s scream filled the air, a high-pitched, ear-splitting sound that rattled the very walls of the hotel. Maya winced, feeling the force of the wail reverberate through her body. She focused all her energy on creating a psychic barrier, her mind straining against the overwhelming power of the banshee’s voice.
“Please,” Maya pleaded, her voice barely audible over the wail. “Let me help you find peace.”
For a moment, the banshee hesitated, her scream faltering. Maya could sense the spirit beneath the dark force, struggling for control. But the rage, driven by the malevolent magic, returned quickly. The banshee lunged at Maya, her ghostly hands reaching out with deadly intent. Maya barely managed to hold her ground, her psychic shield flickering under the force of the banshee’s assault.
Maya knew she couldn’t hold out much longer. Slowly, she retreated, her psychic shield barely holding up under the assault, the spirit driving her closer to the ballroom where the energies were stronger.
Valerie had set up her gadgets in the grand library, her scanner humming as they picked up erratic readings. Her excitement grew as the data flowed into her EctoBoy – ghost‘s activity would provide a perfect field test for her latest upgrades.
As she fine-tuned her equipment, the energy in the room intensified. Books rattled on the shelves before flying off, crashing into walls.
“A poltergeist,” she muttered with a satisfied grin. “Perfect.”
Valerie’s devices beeped wildly, capturing every fluctuation in the air. “This will give me exactly what I need,” she murmured, watching the readouts. But then, something changed.
Before she could recalibrate, more objects began to move—candlesticks, furniture, everything in the room was swirling in a violent storm of paranormal energy. Valerie ducked as a chair narrowly missed her, the poltergeist’s fury escalating at an alarming rate. Her grin faded as the EctoBoy began to emit warning signals. The data spiked, showing power levels far beyond what any ordinary poltergeist should possess.
Her eyes widened as she realized the entity was not just a simple poltergeist—it was something far more powerful, likely augmented by the dark energy within the hotel. “This isn’t right,” she muttered under her breath, frantically adjusting her gadgets. She tried to send out a low-frequency pulse to disrupt the entity, but the poltergeist barely flinched. Instead, the storm intensified, books and debris flying faster as her tech began to malfunction under the pressure.
“Damn it,” Valerie cursed, quickly switching tactics. She knew she was only delaying the inevitable. The entity’s power was too great to neutralize with her current setup. She needed more power, something to amplify the pulse and push back this supernatural force.
Valerie retreated, ducking behind a bookshelf as she pulled off the casing of her EctoBoy. Her eyes scanned the internal components, focusing on the second energy stream that hadn’t been used yet. “Alright,” she muttered, making a quick adjustment to route the secondary stream into the system. With a deep breath, she activated the enhanced pulse, hoping it would be enough to give her the upper hand—or at least buy her time to escape.
A Desperate Battle
The ghost hunters had been driven relentlessly through the halls of The Argentum Hotel, each of them weakened and battered from their encounters with the malevolent spirits. Each defeat seemed calculated, pushing them farther and farther, as though the spirits were herding them. It soon became clear—they were being forced toward one place: the grand ballroom.
Now, as they stumbled into the vast, decaying room, the weight of the hotel’s dark magic pressed heavily on their shoulders. The ballroom, once a symbol of luxury and grandeur, was now suffused with a suffocating, malevolent energy. Scattered remnants of what had once been a grand celebration—wilted chandeliers, decayed tables, and crumbling pillars—lay strewn across the room like relics from a forgotten era. At the heart of the room stood an enormous, ornate mirror, dark and foreboding, its cracked surface pulsing with sinister power.
Without warning, the mirror began to tremble. A thick, black smoke poured from its frame, swirling and twisting in the air, faster and faster, taking shape. The smoke molded itself into spectral figures—ghostly guests from the Silver Gala. Their hollow eyes glowed with an unnatural light as they formed a circle around the room, blocking every possible escape route. And at the heart of the storm of spirits, a massive, dark silhouette emerged from the mirror.
His decayed form stood tall, imposing, his eyes gleaming with malice. The room grew colder as his presence deepened, his smile twisting into something dark.
“In the end,” his voice cut through the thick air like a blade, “we finally have the missing guests. The ritual will be complete.”
John, Valerie, Maya, and Grim stood frozen, their breath caught in their throats as the entity’s words sank in. This was his endgame—their very lives were to be the final pieces to complete his twisted ritual. The spirits surrounding them began to press inward, their eyes glowing brighter with each step.
Without warning, a wave of psychic energy crashed into the group, an overwhelming force that hammered against their minds. The room twisted, disorienting, and the hunters staggered, clutching their heads in pain. The spirits were attacking not just their bodies, but their very sanity.
Maya, sensing the crushing weight of the spirits’ power, fought back with her psychic strength. She raised her hands, her energy swirling around her as she formed a protective barrier. “I’ll hold them off… as long as I can,” she gasped, her face strained with effort. But the spirits pushed harder, their relentless pressure threatening to shatter her defenses.
Grim barked and growled beside John, his eyes darting to the glowing Blade of Severance, which now pulsed with a soft, blue light. The blade was reacting, sensing the cursed object in the room. “We need to hit that mirror!” John shouted, gripping the Blade of Severance, his eyes locked on the cursed object. “It’s the key!”
He charged forward, but the spirits surged in response, blocking his path. Each strike he attempted against the mirror was deflected by the spirits, who threw him back with brutal force. The room shook with the sheer magnitude of their power, and the hunters were being overwhelmed.
The Dark Presence, watching with cold satisfaction, raised his arms. The air thickened even further as he prepared his final strike. His form glowed with dark energy, swirling around him like a storm. He loomed over the hunters, ready to crush them beneath his power. “You cannot stop me. Your souls are mine,” he growled, his voice a rumble of thunder.
The pressure mounted, and for a moment, it seemed that all was lost.
But just as the Entity unleashed his final attack, a blinding flash of light burst through the ballroom, cutting through the darkness like a blade. Ezekiel appeared at the entrance, his hands raised high, chanting an incantation that echoed through the room. His voice boomed with power, the words of ancient magic flowing like a river. The light from his spell collided with Entity’s dark energy, stopping the demon’s attack in its tracks.
“Now that’s an entrance,” John muttered, catching his breath as Ezekiel strode forward, his presence a calm amidst the chaos.
Ezekiel smirked, his eyes never leaving the Dark Presence. “What are you kids doing here with those toys? This isn’t a place for amateurs” he said, reinforcing the barrier that now shielded the hunters. “Hmm, a demon. Haven’t seen one in a while.”
John’s voice was sharp with urgency. “That mirror—it’s cursed. We need to shatter it to break its hold,” he called out to Ezekiel.
Ezekiel glanced at the mirror, then his eyes flicked to the glowing blade at John’s side. Recognition crossed his face as he spotted the Blade of Severance. “Got it” he replied, his smirk fading as he turned his full focus to holding back the Dark Presence’s relentless assault. “But you’ll need to move fast.”
The Dark Presence roared, its form flickering with unstable power. It hurled itself against Ezekiel’s shield, cracks forming in the barrier as the pressure mounted.
Valerie, still a bit offended by Ezekiel’s comment, quickly began tinkering with her EctoBoy. She pulled off the casing, revealing the inner workings of the paranormal tech—it was immediately noticeable that two streams of energy were running in parallel, both dangerously close to overloading. “Never cross the streams… but things can’t get much worse, right?” she muttered.
“I just need a moment,” Valerie called out, her fingers working rapidly.
John shot her a quick look. “I’m going for it! Whatever you’re doing, hurry!”
The spirits, sensing John’s intent, gathered defensively around the mirror. Leading the charge were the twins, their ghastly smiles stretching wide as they blocked his path. The air grew thick with their rage as they prepared to deflect his next move.
At that exact moment, Valerie pulled a hairpin from her hair. “Well, here goes nothing!” she muttered with a smirk before sliding the pin into place, crossing the EctoBoy’s energy streams. Instantly, a powerful pulse of energy surged outward, rippling through the room and freezing the spirits mid-attack. They flickered and glitched, as if caught in a disrupted signal. John pushed forward, moving through their outstretched arms and ghostly forms as if they were nothing more than smoke.
But as John prepared to strike the mirror, The Silver Lady materialized before the cursed glass, her eyes glowing with fury. Her power was far too great for the EctoBoy to suppress alone. She opened her mouth, readying a deathly scream aimed directly at John.
Maya, acting quickly, focused her psychic energy on the banshee. “I know you’re still in there” she whispered, her voice steady, filled with empathy. “You don’t have to do this. Fight it.”
For a moment, her face softened, her eyes turned more human, and hesitation flickered once more.
It was all the time John needed. He swung the blade, which passed through the banshee and struck the mirror, shattering the cursed glass into a thousand pieces.
The impact echoed like a thunderclap through the ballroom. Glass exploded outward in a shower of shards, and the mirror’s dark magic shattered with it. The shockwave ripped through the room, tearing away the dark energy that clung to the spirits, leaving them momentarily suspended as pure, spectral forms, cleansed of their corruption.
Among the hunters, a fleeting sense of triumph stirred—an optimistic belief that they had finally won.
But it didn’t last long.
As the dust began to settle, John noticed the Blade of Severance still glowing with its intense blue light, pulsing as if sensing unfinished business — this wasn’t over.
From the shadows, a furious, guttural growl echoed through the ballroom.
“Destroyed…” the demon snarled, his voice dripping with venomous rage.
“You think this ends with a broken mirror?” His twisted form flickered back into view, tendrils of dark energy swirling around him like a storm.
“I am bound to this place by far more than glass. I will finish what was started!”
Darkness spiraled out from Demon, coiling through the air like a serpent. His hands crackled with dark energy as he raised them, eyes gleaming with malice. In a split second, he hurled a wave of magic toward the hunters, his rage manifesting in a violent storm of shadow.
But before the attack could strike, something incredible happened.
The spirits, now freed from Demon’s control, moved as one. Their spectral forms, once bound by darkness, began to shimmer with an ethereal light. They surged forward, positioning themselves between entity and the hunters. A protective barrier of shimmering energy formed, blocking the oncoming assault. And at the center of this formation stood The Silver Lady, her figure glowing brighter than the others.
Demon’s dark magic collided with the barrier, but the spirits held firm. His attack dissipated upon impact, the shadows breaking apart like mist in the wind.
His eyes flickered with uncertainty as he glared at The Silver Lady. For a brief moment, doubt clouded his expression. “Even you… you can’t stop me,” he spat, though the words seemed more for himself than her.
With a guttural roar, he unleashed a torrent of black magic, the shadows swirling and spiraling toward the spirits in a deadly wave.
Just as the darkness surged toward them, an extraordinary surge of power pulsed through the spirits. It passed from one soul to another like a rising current, as though they were pooling their strength. This collective energy converged on the Silver Lady, intensifying her silver aura into a brilliant white light, crackling with the force of hundreds of souls, now liberated and unified in their final stand against the dark.
With the black magic racing toward her, The Silver Lady raised her head, her eyes glowing with fierce determination. She opened her mouth, and from deep within her, a piercing scream erupted—a scream not just of sound, but of raw, overwhelming power. White light exploded from her form, laced with the anguish of all those lost souls. It surged forward, colliding with Demon’s dark magic in a brilliant, blinding clash of forces.
For a moment, the room trembled under the weight of the battle between light and dark. The two energies pushed against each other, neither willing to yield. But slowly, dark magic began to falter. The radiant white light of The Silver Lady—now fueled by the combined strength of the spirits—broke through the shadows, shattering them like fragile glass. The beam of pure energy struck Demon head-on, his demonic form writhing under its force.
The Demon screamed, his body tearing apart as the light consumed him. The black magic that had once held him together was no match for the power of the spirits he had tormented for so long. His figure twisted, contorted, and began to disintegrate under the onslaught.
Under the relentless light, the Demon’s dark shell tore open, fragments of its shadowy essence scattered like ash. Within the crumbling form, the hunters saw Alfred’s face, twisted in horror and sorrow, trapped and exposed as the Demon’s power disintegrated around him.
The spirits, having given everything in the attack, now appeared faint and flickering. Their forms barely clung to visibility, dim and fragile, as if a gentle breeze might scatter them into nothingness.
The Silver Lady turned slowly toward the ghost hunters, her eyes meeting theirs. There was no malice in her gaze—only understanding and a silent agreement. She nodded to them, her message clear: it was time.
The Exorcism and the End of the Curse
Understanding the weight of the moment, Ezekiel stepped forward. His face was calm and focused despite the storm of energy swirling around him. He raised his hands and began chanting the final exorcism. The ancient words flowed with power, resonating in the very air of the ballroom, growing louder and stronger with each passing second.
The atmosphere thickened as Ezekiel’s voice carried through the room, each word vibrating with an otherworldly force. The walls of the ballroom seemed to hum in response, the shadows retreating as the ancient incantation took hold. Valerie’s breath caught as she felt the shift in the air—an intense, almost suffocating pressure that pushed against her chest. Maya’s psychic senses buzzed, the energy of the ritual pricking at her mind, like invisible threads pulling toward the center of the room.
As Ezekiel’s exorcism reached its peak, a glowing ancient symbol began to form on the ground beneath Alfred’s feet. The symbol pulsed with light, first faint, then brighter with each beat, casting long, eerie shadows across the walls. It radiated heat, a slow burn that crept up the legs of the hunters, making the air feel electric. The energy pulsed like a heartbeat, in sync with Ezekiel’s incantation, as though the very room was alive with magic.
The light grew brighter, until the ballroom was bathed in a blinding, almost unbearable glow. The symbol etched itself deeper into the floor, cracking the marble beneath Alfred’s feet. The sound of stone splitting echoed like thunder, reverberating through the space, as if the hotel itself were reacting to the ritual. A swirling portal began to form within the glowing symbol, its edges shimmering with a mystical, violet energy. A gust of wind ripped through the room, whipping debris and dust into the air, drawn toward the growing vortex.
Alfred’s eyes widened in terror as the portal began to pull at him. The dark energy that had fueled him for so long was the first to go—tendrils of black smoke were ripped from his body, spiraling downward into the glowing abyss. The energy writhed as it was sucked into the portal, like a living thing resisting its fate, but there was no escape.
“Noooo!” Alfred screamed, his voice echoing with desperation. His hands clawed at the air, as though trying to grasp onto the ballroom itself.
The pull of the portal was relentless. The vortex grew stronger, the light more intense. The dark energy that had once kept Alfred tethered to the hotel was rapidly fading, draining into the void. The crack in the floor widened, glowing with violent energy as the portal tugged harder, pulling the very essence of Alfred’s being toward its depths. His decaying body began to follow, pieces of his form crumbling into ash as they were dragged down, consumed by the swirling light. His screams of rage and fear grew weaker with each passing second.
The hunters stood rooted in place, each of them feeling the immense power of the exorcism course through the room. John’s grip on the Blade of Severance tightened as he watched the ritual unfold, the blue light of the blade still pulsing faintly in his hand, signaling that the curse was finally breaking.
The swirling wind grew deafening, and the final pieces of Alfred’s demonic form were torn away, spiraling into the portal. With one last, agonized wail, Alfred was swallowed whole, disappearing into the glowing abyss.
Ezekiel’s voice, now a booming crescendo, reached the final words of the exorcism. The ancient symbol flared brightly one last time, and with a blinding flash of light, the portal sealed itself shut. The ground beneath where Alfred had stood stopped trembling, and the glowing symbol faded, leaving behind only silence and stillness.
For a moment, it felt like the entire hotel was holding its breath. The once oppressive darkness lifted, the tension in the air dissolving like mist after a storm. The temperature warmed, and the ballroom, which moments before had felt alive with malevolent energy, now seemed… peaceful.
Ezekiel scanned the room, his gaze resting on the shattered mirror. “It’s done,” he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. Maya stood beside him, nodding quietly, feeling the peace that had finally settled over the spirits.
John, still gripping the Blade of Severance, knelt down beside Grim. Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out the dog’s favorite treat and handed it to him. Grim took it eagerly, wagging his tail as John murmured, “Good boy.” As John watched his dog, a wave of exhaustion washed over him. The weight of his family’s legacy, of countless cursed objects destroyed, seemed to lift, if only for a moment. He let out a slow breath, feeling both relief and the weariness that comes from a lifetime of hunting.
Valerie, leaning against a nearby wall, let out a heavy sigh, sliding down to sit on the floor. She exhaled loudly, running a hand through her messy hair. “Well, that was a blast,” she said with a tired grin, though her mind was racing. The data her EctoBoy had gathered was off the charts—power readings beyond anything she had encountered before. Yet now, with the battle over, her usual enthusiasm was replaced by a gnawing curiosity about the forces at play. “Remind me never to do that again.”
John shot her a brief, dry look. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He glanced at Grim, scratching the dog’s ear. “We’ve had worse days, right?”
Valerie, ever the one to lighten the mood, raised an eyebrow. “So… pizza?”
John blinked, surprised. “Pizza?”
Valerie smirked. “Come on, we just saved a bunch of tortured souls. I think that deserves something better than stale granola bars.”
John sighed, shaking his head but not arguing. “Fine. But you’re paying.”
Maya giggled softly. After so much pain and suffering, she finally felt at peace knowing the spirits had found their rest. The Silver Lady, the twins—they were free now, thanks to their efforts. For the first time in what felt like days, Maya allowed herself to relax, smiling gently at the thought of something as mundane as pizza. Grim barked in agreement, wagging his tail as if to second the suggestion.
Ezekiel, wiping dust off his coat, smirked. “Just let’s hope the pizza place doesn’t have ghosts too.”
They shared a quiet laugh, the weight of the battle lifting slightly. But in the quiet moments that followed, something more settled in the room. Each of them, though relieved, couldn’t shake the feeling that their journey together had only just begun.
John leaned back against the wall, watching Valerie fiddle with her gadgets. Despite the exhaustion tugging at him, he felt a strange sense of comfort knowing he wasn’t alone in this fight. “You know,” he said quietly, “for all that tech, you did alright. Even if it almost blew up in your face.”
Valerie shot him a mock glare but grinned. “Old-fashioned relics have their place, but science is the future. You’ll see.”
Maya glanced at Ezekiel, her psychic senses still humming with the aftereffects of the battle. “You held off Alfred’s attack like it was nothing,” she said, admiration in her voice. “That was… incredible.”
Ezekiel shrugged, though his smirk softened into something almost genuine. “I’ve been doing this a long time. But even I know when I can’t do it alone.” He glanced at the others, something unspoken passing between them. He wasn’t used to teamwork, but tonight had proven there was strength in numbers.
In the stillness of the ballroom, something else settled—something that went beyond their immediate victory. Though they had come to The Argentum Hotel as strangers, the trials they had faced had forged an unspoken bond between them. What started as separate quests, driven by individual motives, had now converged into a single, united purpose. They weren’t just individual hunters anymore—they were something more.
This was only the beginning. That night marked the start of what would soon become WTG?! Paranormal Investigations—a specialized group dedicated to the neutralization of all paranormal phenomena. A team forged in the fires of the supernatural, destined to face even greater challenges ahead. Though this battle was won, the supernatural world harbored darker, more dangerous threats still waiting to emerge…