The backyard of Ramelan House was now a glowing, haunted battleground.
Ghosts, ghouls, and other supernatural freeloaders crowded around a giant ring of salt.
Banners floated overhead:"GHOSTCON 2025 – THE SHOWDOWN!"
Tia Ramelan stood at one end of the ring, hands trembling, holding a broken broomstick.
At the other end, Frankie Spookums spun the Soulstone on his finger like a basketball.
His friends cheered him on:"FRANKIE! FRANKIE! FRANKIE!"
DJ Deadbeat spun an ominous beat in the background.
Ba'zaroth appeared beside Tia with a smirk.
"You're screwed," he said cheerfully.
Tia yanked the broomstick into a battle stance.
"NO. I am fighting for my house!"
Ba'zaroth tossed her a small, ancient-looking manual titled:"How to Duel When You're Absolutely Unqualified and About to Die – Vol. 1."
Lady Eugenia floated over in full referee gear — striped shirt, haunted whistle, and a clipboard.
"Alright, dears! Duel rules are simple!" she shouted over the crowd.
No leaving the salt circle.
No summoning world-ending demons (without filling out the proper paperwork).
No cursing opponents' grandmothers.
And most importantly:NO THROWING MR. FLOOFERS.
The cat hissed proudly from the VIP section, wearing a tiny crown.
Ellis held up a sign that said:"YOU GOT THIS, BOSS."
DJ Deadbeat dropped a remix of "Eye of the Tiger" but like... creepy.
Bingo dive-bombed Tia's head again screaming, "VIOLENCE IS THE ANSWER!"
Lady Eugenia blew the whistle.
"DUEL COMMENCE!!"
Frankie Spookums lunged first —
He hurled a poltergeist pie (it screamed all the way to her face).
Tia barely dodged, tripping over her own shoe.
The ghosts roared in laughter.
Tia's face flushed.
Not today, Satan.
Or, uh, Frankie.
She swung the broomstick in a wild arc.
THWAP.
It smacked into Frankie's forehead.
His little ghost body wobbled like jello.
Frankie recovered and unleashed a SPOOK BLAST.(Trademark pending.)
A tidal wave of slime flew at Tia.
She ducked.
Mostly.
Now she was half-slime, half-fury.
Ba'zaroth called from the sidelines, "Looking good, Nickelodeon Slime Queen!"
Tia flipped him off.
Then gritted her teeth.
If she wanted to win, she had to fight dirty.
Phase 2: Ultimate Chaos Plan.
Tia:
Pretended to trip (classic).
Tossed ghost glitter in Frankie's eyes.
Slammed her broomstick into the Soulstone mid-spin.
BOOM.
A mini explosion of haunted confetti.
Frankie yelped and dropped the stone.
It rolled to the center of the salt ring.
Time slowed.
Both of them lunged for it.
Right before Tia touched it, Ba'zaroth appeared in her peripheral vision, whispering:
"Careful, little witch. The Soulstone demands a price."
Tia hesitated.
Frankie didn't.
He grabbed it.
And immediately screamed.
The Soulstone backfired.
Ectoplasm geysers shot out of his ears.
His hair caught on invisible ghost fire.
His shoes turned into screaming pickles (?? somehow??).
Frankie wailed and dropped the Soulstone again, sprinting in circles.
The crowd howled in laughter.
Lady Eugenia floated over dramatically.
She slammed the haunted whistle.
"Tia Ramelan wins by technical meltdown!"
Ellis flipped a sign:"🏆🏆🏆 OUR QUEEN 🏆🏆🏆"
Mr. Floofers farted in celebration.
DJ Deadbeat blasted victory music.
Tia stood there, blinking, slime dripping from her hoodie.
She had WON.
Kind of.
Maybe.
Probably.
Ba'zaroth sauntered up to her.
"You technically now own the Soulstone," he said lazily."And also, uh, the legal responsibility for any minor apocalypses it causes."
Tia groaned.
"Can I throw it into a volcano?"
Lady Eugenia flipped through her Haunted Law Handbook.
"Technically, yes. But you'd need a note from the volcano."
DJ Deadbeat whispered ominously:"Mount Doom is booked through August."
Later that night, after the ghost rave died down (at 4 a.m. because ghosts do not sleep), Tia collapsed onto the porch with a mug of ghost cocoa.
The stars flickered overhead.
Bingo sat on her shoulder, preening his feathers.
Ellis handed her a new sign:"YOU SURVIVED GHOSTCON 2025!"
Ba'zaroth sprawled lazily on the porch swing.
"You know," he said, "you're starting to look like a real supernatural landlord."
Tia groaned.
"Kill me."
Lady Eugenia floated by in a floatie ring.
"Not until you sign next year's GhostCon contract, dear."
Tia screamed into her cocoa.
Inside the house, the Soulstone sat quietly under a heavy pile of cursed books, chained to the radiator, and protected by six ghostly ward spells.
It pulsed.
Just once.
Softly.
Like something still listening.
Waiting.