Chapter 292: Apartments of the Damned

The apartment seemed way too normal. For everything that was happening behind her, Ann expected torture devices, bloodstains, and awful spectres. It was fully furnished, beautifully decorated, and well lit. A litter box in the corner told her the owner had a cat, and the collection of pots and pans that’d seen far better days thousands of years ago told of someone who’d loved to cook.

“Hello?” Ann shouted. “We’re coming in! Uh… don’t hurt us?”

Ann stepped over the threshold and felt the temperature drop. It had been so long since she’d actually shivered in the cold that the feeling almost hurt. Whatever this was, it was bypassing her cold resistance skill.

Against every instinct telling her to run for it, she took another step, fully entering the room. Anthony had really remodelled the place. What had been a bog-standard apartment building was now a luxury suite. A kitchen, bath, and two bedrooms branched off the living room. The walls were well made, and it looked like the architect had spent a significantly longer time on this iteration. It still had the telltale signs of magical crafting, such as seams being nonexistent, but Ann’s eyes could have easily been tricked.

A pile of mouldy books lay on the coffee table, and Ann picked one up. She couldn’t make out much of it, but it seemed to be a journal. The most legible part was the name. Jennifer Boivin. Probably a Quebecer who moved out west. Lots of French names from that region.

Flipping through the disintegrating pages, she picked up a few things. Jennifer liked to be called Jenny; she was rather elderly and had somehow survived the Return. Not much was legible except mention of the hotel.

Ann cast around with Minnie, trying to figure out if there was anything else, as Bren and Rosalyn hit another room across the hall. She couldn’t see anything, nor smell anything. Whatever had been here was probably long since decayed. It was a wonder that most of the furniture still survived.

“Ann, let’s get out of here,” Minnie said. “Don’t like how this place feels. Something’s… really off.”

“Yeah. Gonna need a fucking priest to cleanse this place,” Ann growled at nothing. Her fur had been standing on end since she stepped into the room, and her tail was fully puffed out.

As she followed Minnie out of the room, Ann paused. She swore she heard the faintest giggle. It was just on the edge of her hearing, but it had been a woman’s. She closed the door, hopefully shutting whatever the fuck had been in there away.

“Nothing in here, either,” Bren said. “Just old possessions that survived the ages. Strangely warm in there.”

“Warm?” Ann asked. “That room was freezing. I could actually feel it!”

“You think it’s got something to do with your soul stuff?” Rosalyn asked. “Like, these are ghosts. They’re old spirits or souls or something. Not entirely sure. Didn’t study too much up on them. Wouldn’t they fit into what you can sense?”

“Souls would be the closest to correct,” Bren affirmed, before looking to Ann for her answer.

It is within your power, but you are not actively trying. The things here are old and powerful.

Older than you?

Asking about age again? No. These spectres are not older than I.

“Waheela says you’re kinda right, but these things are so strong it’s just hitting everyone. No clue what the fuck.”

“Ye find any remains?” Kat asked, emerging from the third room with Lucia.

“None. You find any?” Ann asked.

“No. Strange feeling. Like… needles?” Lucia said. “Not pain, just prick.”

Ann really didn’t want to go into that room.

Kat snorted.

Lucia punched her arm, finding a gap in her armour.

“More’n ye’re used tae?” Kat continued to tease.

“I am sure Bren’s a perfectly good lover,” Ann giggled, watching as the healer turned beet red.

Lucia growled. “Quiet.”

Ann grinned at her. “Oh, I won’t kiss and tell. Or kiss. That one’s yours. Hands off!”

Lucia nodded, then grabbed Bren’s robe to drag him closer. Stupidly cute.

“Do we want to check all of these rooms? These first three weren’t too much. Just kinda the idea of who lived here, you know?” Ann asked, looking down the hall at the next seven doors. Anthony really did make it so these people had good spots, with the entrances all spread out. Maybe these were his first residents?

“Just pop in. Nothin’ much,” Kat decided. “See if there’s anythin’ off, an’ we can keep goin’.”

With that directive, and the face of a ghost poking up the stairs behind them, they got to it. That fucking bell was still ringing, and Ann wanted to go up and get as far away from it as possible.

The next two rooms were the same layout as the first. Seemed that while Anthony was personalising things far more, floor plans were beyond his range of skills. He could have at least flipped the damn thing, but no, it was the exact same layout. The first gave Ann this weird prickling feeling, while the other was burning like the one Kat described.

Kat had one that felt like she couldn’t breathe, and Rosalyn remarked on one that felt like she was in a snowdrift. Strange in all ways. Especially that each room had a different feel to it.

The ghosts continued their slow but inexorable advance down the hallway behind them. They were forcing the party to keep moving, not wanting to deal with whatever the hell happened when they caught up. At last, they were done and stared up at the next set of stairs.

“Up we go,” Ann sighed, and started the climb.

Just as she did, a hand clamped down around her ankle, pulling roughly over her fur. Looking down, she saw a ghost. No, not a ghost. The one from earlier!

“Doom! Do not ascend, lest you meet your end!” she wailed.

“We’ve gotta figure out what’s going on here,” Ann snapped at the ghost. “Listen, this is fucked up. Whatever happened here’s got a lot stuck. The dog downstairs, most of all. I’m gonna figure out what the hell happened to all of you and then I’m cleansing this all the best I can. Got it? Now let go of my fucking ankle.”

The ghost looked at her, a strange expression straining her taut features. Her eyes narrowed, and her grip slackened. “You are… different. Not new. You talk like we did, once. Before time took our minds. I remember some of it. Barely.”

“Yeah, cause I’m Canadian. Really damn old, too. So I know exactly what you’re talking about,” Ann retorted.

The ghost’s eyes widened, pale orbs staring back at her. “Then… maybe. Ascend. Free us.” She shook her head, clutching it. “No! She mustn’t! Death and worse above. Not the place. Not the green place!”

“What happened to you?” Ann asked.

Everyone was staring at the woman as she curled up in mid-air. She shimmered, her form rippling, and a glimpse of something else flashed. Skin torn and ragged, lines cut into it in oddly geometric patterns.

“NO!” she screamed. “NOT THERE, NOT THE GREEN PLACE!”

She vanished.

Ann’s blood froze as her heart pounded. What the fuck was the Green Place? What the fuck were those lines on that woman’s skin? What in the absolute hell happened here?

Kat’s look was just as horrified as Ann felt, not to mention the deer-in-the-headlights expression Rosalyn had. Minnie was visibly shaking, but Bren and Lucia seemed mostly composed.

“We continue,” Bren stated flatly. “I would see this place cleansed of whatever this evil is.”

Lucia nodded, gripping Fillianore tighter.

Ann took the next step up the stairs, jolting the rest out of their shock. It’d be so easy to just not. Easy to just skip down those stairs and head out with Daisy. She alone was worth an amazing amount, and they could have someone specialised in ghosts come down here to clean it out.

Something inside her told Ann that wasn’t an option. These were people from after she’d been taken out. Not long after, either. Anthony was definitely someone from her time. Whatever awful shit he’d done, Ann needed to know. Needed to free these people.

A quiet thrum in her chest told her that Orenous and Waheela actually agreed about this one. She was needed here.

Using that feeling as a bolster, she reached the third floor. It was exactly the same as the second floor. Several rooms, doors spread sparsely down the hallway, with a beautiful carpet and furnishings.

Each room was checked in order. None of them were occupied, and all of them were suspiciously clean, except for time doing its thing. A couple of the rooms even felt normal, which was weird considering the others had some strange sensations permeating the spaces.

The ghosts were starting to grow in number as they advanced. Ann was keeping an eye on them, watching as they slowly floated or pulled themselves out of the floor and end of the hallway. Strangely, they were only coming from the floor. She would have thought that a few would be attracted from the upper floors, but it didn’t seem like it.

One apartment had a dog lover, complete with little metal statuettes. Another had been an artist of some sort, with long-dried painting supplies and canvases strewn around the living room. The only room that had modifications made to it was one that had an extended kitchen, likely to support a baker or chef of some sort. People out here couldn’t all be self-sufficient.

“Were there even Paths in these days?” Ann asked, watching as a ghost reached outwards, floating horizontally as it wound its way down the hall. Shouldn’t ghosts be faster than this? The one who warned them seemed to be far more mobile. Maybe these were like zombie ghosts; ones that didn’t have all of their brains still in their control.

“All records say no, but they are ancient records. Things may have been lost in the wars and cataclysms,” Bren explained. He lifted a hand, and a shimmering plane of force appeared in front of the ghost.

Its hand pushed through without resistance.

“Damn. I was hoping I might slow them down. I believe this floor to be identical to the second. Let us not waste our time and continue our ascent. Are there any objections?”

Rosalyn shook her head, still watching the ghosts keenly. She’d never stopped, only breaking line of sight when they investigated the rooms. She’d also been terribly quiet. Ann knew she was spooked and took her hand, giving it a comforting squeeze.

“I want to figure out what’s going on here,” Ann said, nodding. “I can’t let this place just stay this way. I know it’s going to get worse, but I’ve gotta know. Something’s calling me, and I’m not ignoring my gut.”

“Yer gut seems tae be mostly right,” Kat agreed. “I say we go. Keep ahead o’ the ghosts. Figure out why so many’re here.”

Bren gave her a quizzical look. “I would say the why is fairly obvious, is it not? They all died here. The circumstances do not seem to have been pleasant, either. If this place was owned by Anthony…” He let the implication hang in the air like a blade.

“Yeah,” Ann muttered. “Let’s keep going. Minnie, you good?”

The woman looked absolutely terrified, but that was the normal reaction to something like this. Ann would be concerned if she wasn’t scared. A building filled with ghosts and possible death was not a place for a non-combatant, but they needed her all the same. “Feel like this is the safest place I could be now that I’m here,” she nodded shakily. “I’m going with you, but I definitely want out.”

“Ye’re the escorted, ‘ere. Ye want, we can drop ye off with Daisy after ye make friends,” Kat suggested. “Once she’s friendly wit’ ye, we can head back up.”

“I… shit, yeah, that does sound better. I’m sorry, this is so far beyond what I’m good for,” Minnie said with a trembling laugh.

Ann nodded. “Alright, let’s head back down. Rosalyn and I will go down first, make sure Daisy’s still friendly, then introduce you.” She started down the winding stairs.

The way down was a bit complicated. Spectres of all kinds were waking up, reaching from the walls and stairs themselves. There were a couple of times when the group had to help the less nimble over or past a particularly awkward spirit.

Ann’s claws finally clicked on the main floor. The receptionist started his deafening rings again, screaming about how the hotel would harm them. Ann’s ears were flat to try and block out the sound, but it seemed to vibrate her skull even so.

They quickly got the rope out and lowered it. With Kat and Lucia as anchors, they sent Rosalyn, then Ann, then Minnie clambering down.

Before Ann’s paws hit the ground, she heard Rosalyn.

“Daisy! Where are you, girl? I’m back for a little bit, but I’ve gotta go again, but I also brought you a friend to hang out with!”

There was a crash from the hallway, then another at the door to the apartment as the massive dog wedged herself inside. Cataract-clouded eyes found Rosalyn, then Ann dangling from the ceiling in the closet.

Tippy taps! The dog would be so damn ugly-cute if she wasn’t so messy. Her entire demeanour changed when Minnie started to come into view. Her hackles rose, her lips pulled back, and her claws dug into the carpet. Ann knew that look. She’d worn it a few times. Daisy saw Minnie as a threat.

“Easy,” Rosalyn crooned, putting herself between them. “She’s a friend! Minnie!” Rosalyn pointed as Minnie touched down. “Friend!” Rosalyn walked over and gently hugged Minnie.

Daisy cocked her head, pointed ears flapping slightly.

“Friend!” Rosalyn repeated. “Minnie. Hey, get some meat. She likes treats.”

Minnie did as she was bade and pulled out a strip of salted bacon, then tossed it to the hound.

It smacked into Daisy’s face, square between the eyes. She tried to go cross-eyed, then backpedalled as if that would get the bacon off her face and into her mouth.

“Shit, one sec!” Minnie cried, rushing after the dog.

Ann had a moment of fear as Minnie reached out, but Daisy only whipped her head around, trying to dislodge the treat. No attempt to snap, nothing but the bit of bacon mattered.

When she finally got Daisy to behave and got the treat onto the ground for her to slurp up, Minnie laughed. “Dumb as any other mutt. We good, girl?”

Daisy’s eyes lifted from the floor she was licking and then back to the floor, continuing her frenzied attempt to get more bacon out of the carpet.

“I think we’re good,” Minnie nodded, picking a fleck of dried meat out of the dog’s forehead folds and dropping it.

The scrap was gone in a blink.

Minnie gently patted Daisy’s forehead, and when she didn’t react, nodded. “Yeah. We’re good. Head on up, and let me know if you get this all cleared out.”

“Will do,” Ann said. She turned to Daisy. “You, my precious pupper, guard her, alright? She’s number one. She doesn’t get hurt by anything else.”

Daisy looked up, and Ann swore she nodded before she got back to making a disgusting mess.

“Alright, hotness. See you later,” Ann waved, and swung herself upwards. She hadn’t really noticed, since the last two ascents were either climbing a wall or getting yanked upwards, but climbing the rope was nearly effortless. Gym class had made them do it back in Secondary, but Ann had been terrible at it. The coordination between her arms and legs just was not there. Now? Now she could grip with her paws, claws digging into the rope a bit, and uncoil herself before repeating the whole process.

Rosalyn got the express treatment, rising gently as Kat and Lucia hauled her up and up. If she’d had her dress, Ann would have likened her to a floating cloud. Even with her current robes, she was still gorgeous. All business, though, as soon as she got her footing. “I don’t wanna be here any longer than we’ve gotta!” she shouted over the screaming and ringing. “Let’s go!”

Kat spooled up the rope, and they set off and up again. There weren’t any other encounters with their sane ghost on the way up. They did have to change stairwells after the second floor, since the spirits had shifted their direction. Ann wondered what could be attracting them, but stopped caring after she realised it could be one of a million things. It could be that they were alive, or they were divinely touched, or the magic of their Paths.

They stood at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the fourth floor. Short term stays. A week or two at most. This part of the floor plan wasn’t too confusing. They were the middle residents. Whatever they paid, if money was even a concern in the post-apocalypse this place had been built in, was not enough or stable enough to earn them a lower floor room.

“No time like the present.” Ann started climbing.