Zoe felt like she was trapped on a fixed path with no escape. Much like the road she currently traveled on. Straight with no visible turn offs and swallowed by rolling fog. She flicked on her headlights, slowing down to avoid drifting off the edge of the road. This wasn’t the way she imagined she’d spend her time after graduating from M.I.C.A. The Magnus Institute for Conjuration and Academics.

  Learning magic was more than just a dream. It was her passion, and she was good at it. Now that name just haunted her thoughts like some unwelcome shadow that seemed to loom over her wherever she went. It was part of the reason she’d packed her stuff up and started this little “road trip.” Her eyes drifted to the picture wedged into the rearview mirror. Her parents were smiling in that way they used to, so full of life. Now it was just a painful reminder of what she’d lost.

  Zoe sighed. What was she doing out here? Running from her responsibilities? Going on some life journey where she finds all the answers? The song she’d been listening to on repeat suddenly skipped, which made her frown. Her brows furrowed. That shouldn’t have been possible with today’s technology. The music continued to play undisturbed so she was about to dismiss it as her imagination when without warning the music fades and was replaced by a burst of static.

  No it wasn’t just noise. There was a voice lurking just beneath the crackling static. So faint that it was almost inaudible, but it was unmistakably human. Before she could process it, the car’s engine shuddered and died, and left her in total darkness. The headlights flickered out leaving a veil of fog to obstruct her view. “Oh come on,” she muttered, her frustration mounting.

  A figure merged from the fog. Its outline was distorted and its posture was almost too perfect. Almost statuesque. If it hadn’t moved she wouldn’t have believed it was even human. Zoe gasped, her heart racing. In a panic, she jerked the wheel to the right. The car’s tires screeched in protest as it veered off the road. It came to an abrupt stop inches away from a weathered sign that read:

  “Welcome to Ashford Bay”

  Zoe gripped the steering wheel as her heart pounded. Stunned and in shock. It took several moments before she regained enough composure to move. Slowly, she reached for the handle and pushed the door open. The fog seeped around the door to envelop her. It was thick and suffocating, as if it had a mind of its own. She forced herself to take slow deliberate breaths to slow her racing heart and thoughts.

  She could barely see past her own car. “Hello?” She called out with an unsteady voice. “I…I’m sorry, I didn’t see you! The fog… it just…” Her voice trailed off as her words were lost in the silence. Her stomach twisted. No response. Her eyes, green with flecks of gold, darted around seeking any sign of life. There was no movement at all. The air carried an unnatural chill which caused her to shiver and pull her jacket tighter around herself.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  It also carried a strange aroma. She wasn’t used to the salty air of the east coast. They didn’t have that in Kansas. It was strange how she noticed that despite her nerves being on edge. It almost made her laugh at how absurd it was. Almost. A sound cut through the silence and dragged her out of her thoughts. It was a slow scraping noise of something against the pavement. It was deliberate and close. Too close. It sent a strange sensation down the back of her neck.

  She hesitated. A part of her mind tried to convince her if she didn’t turn around then it would be nothing. Just a figment of her imagination. The rational part of her mind won out as she spun around, eyes darting through the fog. A figure stood in the distance. Its body was half-lost in the haze. It was too far away to have caused that sound which didn’t do her nerves any favors.

  “Hello?” She called out and took a hesitant step forward. The sudden crackle of static bursting to life washed the silence away as the radio sprang to life. Static bled through the speakers making her jump. A cheerful voice, a stark contrast to her current situation, cut through the white noise. Without thinking she turned to look at her car. “And now, a town favorite! Let’s all sing along to… “Smiling Faces, and Brighter Days!”

  Zoe froze. That… wasn’t the song she had been playing. She hoped the radio just reset when the power shut off. A fleeting sense of hope began to take root. Hope that this entire situation was almost behind her. She turned to look back at the figure. It was gone. Vanished within the fog. Her pulse hammered in her ears. The song started to play. The melody was bright and inviting. Almost too inviting.

  “Smiling faces, brighter days,”

  “The sun will shine, the dark will fade,”

  “Come on home, don’t be afraid….”

  Soft clapping echoed in the background. It was offbeat. The laughter that followed didn’t seem natural at all. It was too synchronized. A distorted chorus of joy that felt… wrong. Rehearsed even. Suddenly the melody began to falter. The clapping… the laughter… all of it deteriorated into an incoherent hiss of static. There was a brief moment of clarity as the final verse emerged.

  “You belong… you’ve always stayed…”

  Then everything went quiet. An oppressive silence hung in the air as the radio turned off. The lights slowly faded to darkness. Zoe’s breath came fast and shallow. “What the actual fuck,” she whispered. She spun around without thinking and threw herself back into the car, locked the doors, and fumbled getting the key into the ignition. She tried to crank the engine. Nothing happened. The hope that began to take root withered and died in that moment.

  Zoe gritted her teeth and slammed her fist against the wheel. “Then how the hell was the radio playing,” she hissed. Panic began to creep in. Then, as if mocking her, the sign in front of the car emerged from within the mist. It loomed high over her. “Welcome to Ashford Bay.” She exhaled, forcing herself to calm down. She suppressed the urge to just abandon her car and sprint down the road and away from this town.

  However, the fact she nearly ran someone over made her reconsider. The last thing she wanted was to become someone’s hood ornament.

  With a sigh of finality she looked up at the sign. “I better not get murdered,” she muttered under her breath.