The two trolls ran down the hallway at top speed, Leaf trying to murder Branch, as he ran for his life.
"Mom! Dad!" he cried out in hopes his parents would hear him and come to his rescue. "Help!"
—————
Back in Branch's bedroom, Poppy and Synth had continued the game without their friend, becoming too impatient to wait for him to come back.
"AHHHHH!" a terrified scream suddenly sounded from out in the hall, Poppy turning just in time to see Branch run past the open doorway.
"Get back here, so I can kill you!" Leaf yelled out, running past the room in pursuit of her younger brother.
"Umm..." Poppy muttered softly, watching the now empty doorway in confusion. "Should we go help him?"
"No way, bro..." Synth responded, too focused on the game to notice his best friend was in danger. "We're almost to the boss level!"
—————
"Ok, Árbol..." an older green troll said, seeming to be putting on the final touches of a large machine down in the basement of their family home. "Just a few more adjustments and I'm... AHHH!"
A sudden zap of electricity, and the green troll went flying backwards, slamming roughly into the wall behind him.
"Done..." he groaned softly, laying on the floor with his eyes closed.
"And that's why you're not an electrician, honey..." a purple troll around the same age said, reaching out a hand to help her husband back up to his feet
"Actually..." he objected, rubbing his head a bit before accepting his wife's help. "I'm not an electrician because I have a way cooler job. Maybe it doesn't pay a lot... yet! But it will, once they see my latest creation... the..."
"AHHHHH!" both adults suddenly heard, followed by the sound of tiny footsteps running down the stairs at full speed. "Mom! Dad!"
"Ugh..." both parents groaned in annoyance, instantly recognizing the sound of their twelve year old son's voice. "Their fighting again..."
"Mom!" the little voice yelled out again, the basement door suddenly flying open to reveal Branch running into the room. "Dad! Help! She's gonna kill me!"
Quickly, the young child ran behind his parents for protection, Leaf running in soon after.
"I'm gonna kill him!" she yelled out, scanning the room for her brother, who she quickly spotted behind the two adults, hiding like the little coward he was.
"Leaf..." the older purple troll said in a firm voice, placing her hand gently on her son's head as he hugged his little arms around her leg for protection. "What have we told you about tormenting your little brother?"
"He threw his dumb game controller at me!" she yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Branch.
"Branch..." the older green troll said, turning to look at his son. "Is that true?"
"Well... yeah..." Branch admitted softly. "But only cuz she snapped it in half," he defended in a whimper of fear and sadness.
"Leaf?" the older purple troll said in a firm tone. "Is that true?"
"No!" she lied without hesitation. It was something she did almost all the time, whereas Branch always tried his best to tell the truth. Even if it meant he would get into trouble... he didn't like lying to his parents... it made his tummy all bubbly...
"Liar!" Branch yelled out accusingly. "And I have proof..."
He held out the half of controller he still held in his hand, so his parents could examine it properly.
"Fine! I broke the brat's little toy," she admitted, crossing her arms in annoyance. "Because he broke my computer!"
"Did not..." Branch muttered softly.
"Did so!" Leaf yelled in reply.
"Did not!"
"Did sooo!"
"Did not!"
"Ok, ok!" their father finally yelled out to stop the bickering between his two children. "First off... just because someone does something to you, doesn't mean you have to do it back. That goes for the both of you..."
"Yes, sir..." both kids responded respectfully, Branch's ears drooping slightly in shame, but Leaf seeming completely un-effected by the scolding.
"And second..." their father continued. "Leaf..." He turned to his daughter with a stern look. "Branch did not destroy your computer. I did..."
"What!?" Leaf yelled.
"Ha, ha!" Branch laughed, sticking his tongue out mockingly at his older sister. "Told you I didn't do it!"
"I needed the parts for my latest invention," the green troll continued. "And you never even used that computer anyways. You said it was a piece of junk."
"It was a piece of junk, dad," Leaf yelled. "But it was still mine!"
"I'll get you a new one," their father assured. "With the money I make off of... the phantom portal!" He gestured to his machine, giving his daughter a huge smile.
"I'm never getting that new laptop..." Leaf groaned, knowing her father's inventions never worked as planned.
"What does it do, dad?" Branch asked, intrigued by this new object.
"Well, son," the green troll began with a proud smile. "This machine, when turned on, can open a portal to a world no one thought was possible... ghost world!"
"Ugh! Again with the ghosts, dad!?" Leaf groaned, throwing her hands up into the air in annoyance. "This machine can't take you to a world full of ghosts because ghost don't exist!"
"You see... that's where you're wrong, dear daughter," the green troll chuckled, placing his hands proudly on his hips. "There are ghosts everywhere... and once I get this portal up and running... the world will finally believe in what your mother and I have been proposing for years! Our ghost hunting business will take off, and we'll finally be able to get rid of all those little nuisances."
"Like my game!" Branch yelled out with a smile. "Ghouls and Ghosts!"
"Exactly, Branch," their mom chimed in, ruffling up her son's hair. "We'll destroy those monsters before they can destroy us. Ghosts are very evil you know..."
"Now all we need to do is plug the machine in, and..." the green troll said, plugging the cord into the wall.
Everyone waited in anticipation, but... nothing happened...
"Um... let me try that again..." he said, pulling out the plug from the wall. "All we need to do is plug the machine in, and..."
He plugged it in again, but again... nothing happened...
"Just as expected..." Leaf groaned, beginning to walk away. "My family is so lame..."
"Well..." the green troll sighed in disappointment. "Guess it's not gonna work..."
"Oh, Thorn..." the older purple troll said softly, putting an arm around her husband to comfort him. "You'll figure it out. How about I make some hot chocolate for everyone, while you look at the designs again..."
They both walked out, leaving Branch behind to watch his family leave in disappointment.
"Hmm..." he muttered softly to himself, turning back to his father's machine. "Maybe I could figure this out. Then mom and dad will be happy!"
He smiled at his brilliant idea, quickly putting on a special ghost world suit before heading into the portal to investigate.
"Ok..." he said, looking around. "There's gotta be some way to get this thing working..."
Not paying attention, Branch placed his hand against one of the walls, accidentally hitting an on button...
'Zzzzzzzaaaaappppp!'
With a spark of green light, the portal lit up brightly, a sharp bolt of electricity suddenly surging painfully through the young troll's body.
"AHHHHH!" Branch screamed out in pure agonizing pain, unable to move even an inch, the lightning seeming to pierce right through his bones. "HEEELLLLP!"
But no one could hear the young child's screams, his vision becoming blurry as his pain increased... there was no way out of there...
He could feel his insides melting, his skin seeming to disappear, leaving him almost completely invisible.
"M... mom!" he cried out in fear, wanting his parents to come save him. Needing someone to come save him... "D... d... dad! He... help!"
Finally, the machine spat him back out into his basement, the little blue troll laying limply on the hard floor, his eyes slowly blinking shut...