Cursed ✔️

100. Conjuring

As they were waiting for Helena, Emily and Alex felt like criminal thinking about digging up a grave to wake the corpse up from its long sleep in its coffin. It felt like they were about to do something illegal but they didn't have any other choice.

George's last words in his letter -

'There are many things that I wish I could tell you but some secrets are better left unsaid. I'm taking it with me for the sake of the people.'

- could only mean one thing that he had taken it - the final piece with him. It had to be. What else could he possibly be talking about? But if the coffin was opened and if there wasn't any stone, then there would be no hope at all.

Helena returned with the shovels and they all began to dig up the grave. Even though Emily and Alex hadn't dug a grave before and even if they would've, they would've never thought that one day, they would be digging up the soil just to open the years old coffin. Even though it felt all so new but wrong, they couldn't deny a psychotic rush that ran through their veins. None of them had seen a corpse in the coffin after years and years of it being inside the coffin. They wondered what it could be like. But after 100 years and more, it would come as no surprise to them if they didn't find out the body.

After hours and hours, they finally hit something hard with their shovels. Excited that it could be the coffin, their speed of digging got increased even though their arms were swelling. And soon after a surface what appeared to be of a coffin met their eyes.

They carefully and slowly opened the coffin and saw nothing but teeth and some nylon threads which they assumed to be of the clothes George must be wearing that day. And there was one more thing in that coffin which made all their hearts overjoyed - the third, and the final piece of the cursed emerald stone which was still attached to the heart-shaped pendant with embedded diamonds. The pendant had two empty spaces where the other two emerald stones belonged to.

Emily carefully picked it up and placed it in her pocket.

They put the coffin back and put the dirt and the soil on top of it with the help of the shovels which they had displayed. They patted the shovels a few times to level out the soil.

"Finally!" Clyde couldn't contain his excitement. "Now what?"

"Now, it's time for the three stones to unite," Emily said feeling the final piece in her pocket.

"What would happen when all the pieces meet?" Alex asked looking at the relieved face of Emily.

Emily shrugged causing Alex to ask, "What? So you're telling me that none of you had any idea what could happen? Do you know how dangerous this is?"

"Alex, Hannah, John, and I don't know how to put an end to this curse when we three first started to search for the pieces but we knew that combining the stones would result in something. And even though we aren't prepared for it, I know together, we'll face it."

"Together?" Alex replied sarcastically with concern, "Look around Emily. It's only you, me, and the three ghosts. No offense but I don't think that we can take Diana down just by ourselves. Have you seen how powerful she is?"

"Well, first of all," Emily began, "Father Murphy is with us and second of all, yes, we all are well aware of what she could do. But there was no other way. Father had told us that he had tried to defeat her in the past but wasn't completely successful. He never found out the third piece and now we know exactly why. Trust me, Alex, think about your sister and your parents who had to face the wrath of Diana. Don't let this go now. We need you. The more the better."

"Don't get me wrong, Emily, I'm not backing out, but all I'm saying is that comparing Diana and the army of her pawns with us - just a bunch of kids - is nothing that says a sure win."

"She's right," Clyde said with a mischievous smile as he looked towards Helena and Ryan. Clearly, the three were onto something. "We can't take her down alone,"

"And that's why we need backup," Helena replied reflecting the same mischievous smile.

"What are you two saying?" Emily asked looking baffled.

Looking at Emily, Ryan said, "It's time to join forces."

Ryan closed his eyes as Helena instructed the kids to step back.

All four of them could slowly feel changes in their surroundings like the trees, the ground, the sky, the cemetery, - all shrinking and slowly going away with the time stopped.

Emily, Alex, Helena, and Clyde could see a small ball of light in front of Ryan which slowly began to grow bigger and bigger till it covered him up entirely.

Ryan stepped back and asked Helena and Clyde to join him. Emily and Alex just stood there amazed at whatever was going on in front of them. They were terrified of the unknown that was about to happen but Emily trusted the three and Alex trusted Emily.

It seemed to them like a portal has been opened up to some other dimension. The girls stood there as Emily watched Helena, Clyde, and Ryan closing their eyes and reciting something. Whatever they were doing, the portal was growing bigger radiating a blue soothing light.

The three encircled around the portal and began focusing their energy on the portal.

In no time, they all could see some silhouettes walking towards them through the portal. There wasn't one or two silhouettes, but slowly it felt like hundreds of shadows and silhouettes were marching towards them.

One by one, unfamiliar faces began emerging from the portal.

The ground beneath them began shaking too as spirits of the dead buried in the cemetery rose and joined the spirits coming from the portal.

The sight of the conjuring was mortifying and yet inspiring at the same time.

Clyde, Helena, and Ryan slowly opened their eyes as the portal began to slowly die down. There were hundreds and hundreds of spirits around them.

And even though Emily thought that as Alex couldn't see Ryan, Clyde, or Helena, how could she possibly see the spirits that have been conjured up? But she was proved wrong when she heard Alex's cries of joy, "Mom! Dad! Olivia! I can see you! I really missed you!" Alex ran to give a hug but got disappointed and sad when she realized that she couldn't hug her family anymore.

While the Willows were having a moment, Clyde addressed the spirits, "You all have been conjured up from our realm to end the chapter of evil for good. Would you all join forces to help fight Diana?"

Hearing the name of Diana was enough to start the murmurs. But Helena grabbed their attention saying, "I know, we all know that we are up against the most feared spirit. But if we all are together, there's nothing that could come in our way. There's one against thousands of us. If we all are together, she can't harm us. We will find a way to counter her and her pawns. Now, who's with us to end the devil and the curse for good?"

"Yeah!" Echoed the sound of thousands of spirits in the air - all wanting one thing.