A sleek black car turned into a long driveway. On each side of the lane were long rows of large oak trees that seemed to be leaning over the pavement as if they were weeping. The car bumped as it went over the roots that were growing under and through the cracking pavement.

The driver pressed a button on a handheld tape recorder and held it a few inches from his lips. "We are arriving at 139 Arthur's Avenue on October 15th, 2005. It is approximately," here he checked the car's clock, "10:53 pm. We will set up and begin our investigation at approximately 12:00am." The man pulled the car into the circular driveway at the front of the elegant mansion. He put the car in park and then turned the key in the ignition to shut the car off. He pressed the button to stop recording and slipped the recorder into his pocket, then turned his clear, blue-grey eyes to the woman sitting in the passenger's seat. The woman looked to be no older than 17 or 18, but was really 23, four years younger than her partner. She was looking out of the car window at the large moon that seemed to be smiling down at them Cheshire-cat style.

"Wow," said a voice from the back, "This place is big. We'd better get started."

"Rule number one, Vincent," the driver said, "Never get too excited."

"Fran is right," the woman agreed. "You should be nervous, right? I mean, this is your very first assignment. You don't know what you could find inside these walls."

The car doors swung open as they all stepped outside. Fran, the driver, was a tall, lanky man with wavy blonde hair. He walked to the back of the car and popped the trunk. An item was extracted from inside its darkness. "This is an electromagnetic field detector, or just the EMF. It measures drastic changes in electromagnetic waves. This can sometimes be caused by electricity, but I don't think we'll have that problem here; the electricity's been off for ages," Fran informed Vincent, the trainee. The item in his hand was a small box shaped item with a gauge set behind a plastic cover. The gauge was a piece of thick wire that fluctuated between numbers. "Lorelei is holding the Infrared Thermal Scanner. It measures changes in temperature. Ghost experts say that when a spirit is present it can either absorb surrounding energy, making the temperature around it turn cool, or it can make the temperature around it turn warmer just because of its presence. This scanner will detect those changes." The thermal scanner looked like the price checkers at Walmart. It had a handle with a button, and a screen that showed the temperature. Fran reached into his pocket and pulled out the tape recorder he was talking into earlier. He pressed the record button and slipped it into the breast pocket on his polo shirt. He grabbed two bags from inside the trunk and handed one to each Lorelei and Vincent. Fran pulled out his own bag and threw it over his head in a messenger bag fashion. "Let's get this going."

Moments later they were inside the house, standing in the foyer. It was obvious why people would suspect it to be haunted. The chandelier that must have once hung regally from the ceiling was covered with dust and cobwebs. Dried leaves laid on the floor at their feet as if someone had left the front door open during a wind storm. Identical staircases on either side of the foyer wound up to a second story balcony. Similar doors were placed at the bottom of each staircase leading into dark rooms. The whole house was dark, in fact. The only light came from the moonlight that was streaming through ceiling high windows around the front door and the glass sunroof that peered down at them from the ceiling. Fran took a step forward onto a rug and a puff of dust flew out of it.

"So, now what?" Vincent broke the silence. Fran looked up at the ceiling and tapped his foot, placing his hands on his bony hips.

"What do you think?" Fran turned toward Vincent. "Welcome to your training. Allow me to introduce to you rule number two: let your inner eye guide you to where you feel like you should go." He looked toward Lorelei and raised an eyebrow, permitting a smirk to cross his features. She rolled her eyes; Vincent didn't notice.

"M-me?" he stammered, wondering what Fran could have meant.

"Yes. Where do you feel we should go first?" Vincent looked to his left and saw the door led to a short hallway, but shadowed past view; foreboding, Vincent thought and was struck with a fear. To his right he saw double doors leading to a similar hallway. However, this one was lit by moonlight streaming through a window. Vincent turned towards the moonlight and walked forward. Fran and Lorelei looked at each other in disappointment. Vincent had failed his first test. They both felt the uneasy feeling the first hallway exuded, but as field researchers, they were looking for evidence. It was more likely to find paranormal activity in an environment with an ominous vibe than one with an inviting, calm feel. They followed Vincent regardless, silently agreeing they would inform him of his horrid judgment at the end of the investigation.

As Vincent stepped through the double doorway and into the hallway, he saw a closed door. He attempted to use his "inner eye" as Fran had instructed, but could feel nothing. He supposed this must mean the door, or whatever lay behind it, was safe. He tapped the doorknob before rested his hand on it, and paused for a few seconds trying to get a feel for what was beyond it. Lorelei and Fran exchanged apprehensive looks at Vincent's methods before fumbling inside their bags for flashlights. Vincent turned the doorknob and slowly opened the door, turning his flashlight on and shining it inside. He stepped into the room. It was once a bedroom, but had long since been uninhabited. Cobwebs were strung thickly around the frame of the canopy. Inches of dust lay on every object in the room. Lorelei followed after Vincent, but before Fran, who swatted at cobwebs in the doorway so he could pass without being entangled by their silvery substance. Lorelei began taking thermal readings of the room as Fran strolled toward where Vincent was standing.

"Here," Fran said as he handed the EMF detector to Vincent. "Do a sweep of the room." Vincent turned it on and began pointing it in random directions. Fran pulled the tape recorder out of his pocket and began to talk into it. "Is anyone here with us that would like to communicate?" he asked to no one as he looked at antique knick-knacks that sat cheerfully on a dresser, covered in dust and cobwebs. He noticed an odd little bronze box sitting apart from the ceramic decor, looking strangely out of place with its shiny, dust-less exterior. "Why are you in this house? Are you attracted to some object or are you grounded to his plane?" he asked after a few moments of silence. There was something strange about the box. He picked it up and shined his flashlight on it. Engraved on the top was an image of three angels rising out of a pile of ashes in a fashion much like Fran would imagine a Phoenix would do. "Did you once live here?" he asked out loud again as he turned the box over to reveal an inscription in Hebrew on the back.

"I just got a jump in temperature," Lorelei informed them. "The room was at 68 degrees, but in this spot it's 37."

"And I have an electromagnetic disturbance. It's jumping from 1.5 to 4," Vincent piped in. Lorelei stuck her hand out in front of her.

"I can feel the cold," she said. Vincent hurried over, eager to experience the chill of the unknown. Fran turned off his recorder and walked over to them, still carrying the box. He watched as Lorelei guided Vincent's outstretched hand into the cold spot. His eyes grew wide in disbelief.

"I think something touched me," he slowly said. "What does it feel like when you're touched?" Fran felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around. He felt something hit him hard in the chest, knocking him over. The box flew from his hand as he hit the ground. Lorelei and Vincent turned in time to see a black mist rising from the box. Fran picked his head up off the ground as he felt the room grow colder. He rose to his feet and stood facing the entity. Fran had been investigating for nearly ten years; he'd seen things like this before. They announced their presence, and then disappeared, as if attempting to scare off whoever was invading their personal space. Lorelei understood this also, though she had only been investigating for half the time that Fran had. Fran always attracted strange apparitions at sites, and Lorelei had gained much experience being partnered with him over the five years they'd investigated together. This time, however, Lorelei felt very uneasy. Fran did not seem as strong as he had even a few minutes ago. It was as if his solid facade had been stripped away, and he had been left with his soul bared to everyone, vulnerable to attack. Lorelei felt her thoughts register slowly as she saw the phantom mist throw itself into Fran's body and disappear.

"What was that?!" Vincent exclaimed to the back of Fran's head. Lorelei remained silent.

"Fran?" she walked toward him and gently grabbed his arm. He began to shake and his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He fell to the ground and started convulsing violently. "Fran!"