The Curse of Arnford Manor

By Mythical Traveller
[mythmanxvi (at) hotmail.com]

CHAPTER IV: Arnford


The Arnford (Abandoned Resort Hotel), Holliston, NC
July 14th, 1931, 9:16pm.
The Arnford stood near the edge of a wide plateau and overlooked most of Holliston 
below. From the town center, a quiet asphalt road offered easy passage up the gentle 
slope to the hotel.

As the witches made their way to the Arnford property with Swift Coyote, they began 
to notice their surroundings were plagued with death. The multitude of towering fir 
trees had lost all their leafs, leaving only their crooked branches to cast eerie shadows 
in the moonlight. The grass cover beside the road became sparse and eventually non-
existent. Perched in the trees were dozens of owls, oddly shirking their natural 
tendency not to flock. They stared at Swift Coyote and the witches with their piercing 
eyes, as if considering whether they could take prey so large.

Not knowing what secrets lay hidden within the Arnfords walls, the party had 
dressed for any eventuality. The witches had re-donned their hooded casting robes, as 
there was no need to dress inconspicuously. Swift Coyote had discarded the stuffy 
garments of the western man and replaced them only with his traditional breechcloth 
and leggings. His toned, naked chest bore the same battle marks that his ancestors had 
painted upon themselves before great hunts.

They carried with them their entire luggage, hoping that the empty hotel would 
provide a hospitable shelter for the night. Each of the witches wore a backpack 
containing their few personal belongings. Nerine also carried a small suitcase that 
contained her potions and reagents. Levinia carried a suitcase containing some of the 
covens precious magical relics. Swift Coyote carried nothing but his bow, quiver and 
hunting knife.

A short brick wall by the roadside, engraved with the words, Welcome To The 
Arnford indicated that the five companions were nearing their destination. Shortly 
afterwards, the Arnford itself rose up from the horizon, into their line of sight. It was a 
large building that varied between two and three stories in height. The bright white 
exterior stood out against the dark of night.

As the party drew closer to the building they realized that it was far older than they 
initially assumed. The outer wings of the hotel may have been recent additions, but 
for the most part, it seemed that the building had originally been built as a plantation 
manor, not a hotel. Judging from the style of the architecture, it may have been as old 
as the mid-18th century.

The heavy doors of the main entrance, which had been conveniently left unlocked, 
groaned in protest as the witches pushed them open. Cautiously, they ventured into 
the darkness. The grand lobby they immediately found themselves in suggested that a 
thorough search of the hotel could well take them all night.

They found an adjoining pair of guestrooms on the ground floor and left their bags at 
the feet of the beds within. Then they began their explorations.

The entire building felt like it had been frozen in time. Throughout the communal 
areas were fancy vases, filled with wilted flowers. On the front desk, lonely pens 
layed beside empty inkwells. Most of the larger pieces of furniture were shrouded 
beneath ghostly white sheets, waiting patiently for the day when they could be of 
service to the hotels numerous guests, once more. Nothing seemed to be missing  
save for the lively banter of its residents and the shine of the lavish chandeliers.

The witches and their warrior friend moved from room to room, keeping their minds 
open for anything that felt unusual. Before long, they found themselves standing 
before a set of panelled double doors. On one door was a plaque, Functions Room 
B. This was where the Harrigans had discovered all those babies. Nerine, whose 
sharp intuition had unconsciously guided the party to this place, drew a deep breath to 
calm herself. Then she reached for the brass door handle and turned...

The doors swung inward with absolute silence to reveal an unremarkable room 
beyond. Fifteen feet wide, thirty feet long, with a well-polished hardwood floor. It 
was an unusually lofty chamber, with a lancet-arched ceiling that peaked about three 
stories off the ground. A long, solid-looking banquet table, lined with about 16 
matching chairs was the focus of the chamber. At the far end was a short stage, 
elevated about three feet above the rest of the floor. On the wall behind it were three 
huge stained-glass windows, which let in the faint glow of the moonlit sky outside.

Nerine was the first to step inside the room, followed by Levinia and Nina, then Demi 
and finally, Swift Coyote. Each witch shuddered fiercely as she passed through the 
doorway.

The curse is strong here, Demi remarked in a sorrowful tone.

What makes you think that? Swift Coyote asked.

Are you cold? She inquired.

No, he answered.

Are the hairs on your arms standing on end? She countered. Swift Coyote ran his 
fingers over his forearm and indeed felt the fine brushing of many erect hairs. Demi 
didnt need him to respond  she already knew what his answer would be. Its the 
bodys way of telling you that the room is cursed. Witches are especially in tune to 
such things.

As if pulled by some unseen tether, Nerine paced rapidly along the side of the table, 
then stopped abruptly at the far end. Her companions followed, at a less urgent pace.

This is it! She declared, pointing at a very specific point on the floor. This is the 
epicenter of the entire curse. The source of all that ill will we saw amongst the 
townsfolk today... and the dark energy that created the manifestation in Applebury.

So... This place is the source of the curse? Swift Coyote repeated, What does that 
mean? Do we have to destroy the hotel?

No, The ground here would remain cursed, no matter what happened to the building. 
In fact, the curse would probably feed off the mindless destruction, Nerine 
explained. The damage can only be mended with ritual magic.

Wait... Swift Coyote almost chuckled, hardly believing how simple Nerine was 
making it sound. You mean that all you girls need to do to fix this is cast a spell?

Not that simple, Nina lamented, shaking her head.

Think of a curse as a disease upon the spiritual veil that binds the world together, 
Levinia began. Just like with any physical disease, you cant pick out the right 
medicine until you know what youre dealing with. We need to understand the nature 
of the curse... how it was cast and the motivation behind it, before we can tailor a 
ritual to undo the sickness.

Im willing to bet that there are answers somewhere in this building, Nina 
remarked.

Yes... There is something else here... Something... hidden... waiting, Nerine agreed. 
She seemed to be mesmerized by the floorboards at the curses center in a way that 
concerned her four companions.

Lets keep searching, Nina suggested after a second of awkward silence.

Something... cold... Nerine continued muttering to herself. Something... 
dangerous... She shook her head gently as she broke free from a telepathic trance.

Nina marched over to the massive table and waved a hand through the air in a single, 
brisk motion. Small flames flared to life upon each of the three silver candelabras on 
the table.

Here, she said, passing a candelabra each to Levinia, Demi and Swift Coyote. Use 
these for light.

What are we looking for? Swift Coyote asked.

Well know it when we see it, Nina replied, immediately realizing how unhelpful 
the answer was. Look for something that seems like its keeping a dreadful secret. 
Trust your instincts, she advised with a smile. Her lover returned her smile and 
nodded.

The five companions left the functions room in single file. As they proceeded down 
the adjoining hallway, towards the accomodation wings, a current of frosty air spilled 
from the open doorway of the functions room and snaked through the shadows, 
following the intruders at a distance. 


------------------------------------

The Arnford (Abandoned Resort Hotel), Holliston, NC
July 14th, 1931, 9:59pm.
After carefully inspecting the umpteenth guest suite in a row, the four hooded witches 
turned towards the exit and left. Swift Coyote followed, only a few steps behind 
Levinia. He was at the doorway of the fully furnished suite, just about to leave, when 
he felt a cold breeze rush across the backs of his ankles. He whirled around with 
speed that did credit to his name, causing the flames on his candelabra to flicker 
violently. But he saw nothing... at least, not until his candlelight was steady once 
more.

In his peripheral vision, he noticed something out-of-place. Beneath the large white 
sheet draped over the suites lone double bed was a bulge. Resting right in the center 
of the bed, it ran almost all the way from the headboard to the foot of the frame.

The general shape of the mound looked an awful lot like a covered human body.

Swift Coyote could scarcely believe his eyes. He had just inspected the room with his 
witch friends and he couldve sworn that the bulge hadnt been there a second ago.

Slowly, cautiously, he approached the mysterious mound. Like an expert hunter, his 
footsteps didnt make a sound. As he stopped beside the unsettling form on the bed, 
the warrior reached for the edge of the white sheet. He slowly peeled the cover back 
to reveal what layed beneath...

A blanket.

A blanket that had been rolled up and left lying in the middle of the mattress by the 
hotel staff.

Or had it? 
 
He was certain the bulge hadnt been there earlier. In fact, when he thought about it, 
he distinctly recalled the rolled-up blanket lying horizontally across the foot of the 
bed, just like in every other room they had examined.

Trust your instincts, Nina had advised him earlier. Well, right now Swift Coyotes 
instincts were telling him that there was something unnatural here  in this room! 
After eyeballing the exposed section of the blanket and deciding that there was 
nothing special about it, Swift Coyote slipped his hand beneath it and lightly pressed 
against the mattress.

His grandfather had taught him ways to listen to the spirits of the departed. Swift 
Coyote couldnt sense any spirits inhabiting the room. But when he touched the 
mattress he tapped into an impression  an event so powerful that it burned a 
memory into the objects around it.

In his minds eye, Swift Coyote saw a young white man, surrounded by darkness. He 
called himself Ernest Skylar; he was a merchant who had come here for hospitality. 
He was dying... No! He was being killed! Swift Coyote could feel the terror of the 
mans final seconds. He couldnt breathe... he was cold... so very cold... the blood in 
his veins turned to stagnant sludge. The mans lifeforce was wrenched out of his body 
 violently.

When the vision ended, Swift Coyote removed his hand from beneath the blanket... to 
find his fingers crawling with maggots! He could see now that there was a large 
infestation of them squirming beneath the rolled-up blanket!

Surprised, but not alarmed, Swift Coyote gently brushed the tiny creatures off on to 
the blanket. They were, after all, fellow children of the earth, no less than himself or 
the mighty trees.

The vision hed experienced revealed that a man had died in this room, under 
traumatic circumstances. Odds were that he was one of those suspicious deaths that 
Mrs. Harrigan had mentioned earlier.

Nina and the others would want to know about this discovery. Swift Coyote went 
looking for his friends  theyd only just left the suite so they couldnt have gone far. 
He stuck his head out into the hallway and looked to the left.

Nina! Levinia! he called, in a regular speaking volume, assuming that the witches 
were still close by. No answer. A barely audible sound, like a gust of wind, came from 
the opposite direction. Swift Coyote turned just in time to see a slender, feminine leg 
disappearing behind a corner.

Levinia? he called again. It puzzled him why the witches would be heading to the 
right, because that was the direction they had come from. Nonetheless, he followed.

As he rounded the corner into another hallway, he heard another gust of wind. Then 
he felt it  chilly air blowing across his skin, making his nipples tighten. It played 
havoc with his candlelight, before extinguishing it all together. The warrior huffed in 
frustration. He slowed down to give his eyes time to adjust to the sudden darkness. 
After a few seconds he could make out a faint white glow, like moonlight, emanating 
from around the next corner. He quickened his pace, while remaining mindful of 
possible obstacles in his path.

Beyond the next corner was yet another long hallway. This one was lined by wide 
windows, all along the left side, that reached from the floor to the ceiling. No sooner 
had Swift Coyote turned the corner than he stopped suddenly in his tracks. About 
twenty feet ahead of him, a young woman was dancing, stark naked, under the sheer 
curtains of one of the windows. The pale moonlight swept across her skin like waves 
on a beach as she swayed back and forth. Only small portions of her body were 
illuminated at any one time, but her silhouette resolved many of her details. She 
seemed to be reasonably young - slender, curvaceous, with ample, pert breasts. Her 
hair was long and didnt reflect the moonlight, suggesting it was dark in color. The 
snippets of skin that she slipped into the moonbeams seemed smooth and flawless.

At first, Swift Coyote thought it was Levinia, for she certainly had the right body 
type, but he soon realized that this was somebody hed never seen before. Something 
about this mystery woman perturbed him... something he couldnt quite put his finger 
on. He suddenly realized that the hairs on his arms were standing on end.

The woman stopped dancing and looked at the Native American as if shed only just 
noticed him. Her face remained shrouded in shadow. Without a word, the woman 
turned her back to Swift Coyote and wandered off in the opposite direction, walking 
at a relaxed pace.

Hey! Wait! Swift Coyote pleaded, to no avail. He began to pursue her. He had no 
idea who this woman was, but he was sure that he needed to find out.

Every few seconds, the woman would shine before him as she passed through another 
beam of the pale moonlight. Swift Coyote was rapidly closing the distance between 
them. But the instant he came within an arms reach of where she was supposed to be, 
she seemed to disappear. He hadnt bumped into her or passed her, but she ceased 
crossing the moonbeams shining through the windows.

Suddenly, he caught sight of her way ahead of him. Somehow, she had skipped pass 
two whole windows unseen. Startled, but undeterred, the warrior continued to give 
chase. He lost her again for a moment at the end of the hall, but he quickly noticed her 
turning a nearby corner.

The corner, as it turned out, led down a stairwell. He watched her over the railing as 
she leisurely padded down the steps. By now, his vision had adjusted to the darkness. 
He could make out the shapes of every object in the room. Yet there were moments 
when he completely lost sight of the woman. She was literally disappearing into one 
shadow and reappearing from another!

Now realizing that this creature had magical powers, Swift Coyote drew an arrow 
from his quiver and readied his bow, leaving the useless candelabra on a nearby table. 
He proceeded cautiously down the stairs, ready to defend himself, if necessary.

By the time he reached the bottom, the woman had eluded him again. But he soon 
caught sight of her naked ass, sashaying from yet another shaft of moonlight, into the 
shadows, on his left-hand-side. He felt his manhood reacting to the sight of her firm, 
swaying buttocks. Despite his best efforts to remain focused, his rod began to tingle 
and enlarge.

Something that had been troubling Swift Coyote was the fact that her footsteps didnt 
make a sound. It was not uncommon for women to have a dainty stride, but this lady 
was absolutely silent. She had virtually rendered his tracking expertise useless. On the 
other hand, it seemed obvious that she was deliberately leading him on. It was a way 
of asserting control over the warrior by getting him to follow her, on her own terms. It 
was working.

He lost her trail once again in the middle of another hallway. Just as he was about to 
double-back, he heard a door tapping gently against a doorstop, just a few feet ahead. 
He continued forward and soon came upon a set of wide-open double-doors. He 
passed through the doorway, into a medium-sized chamber. There were some large 
windows, but they were on the wrong side of the building to receive the moonlight, 
leaving the room reasonably dark. Swift Coyote made his way around the edge of the 
room, unable to see anything more than a few feet away.

Suddenly, he noticed movement. A long haired-silhouette stepping out of a shadowy 
corner. It was the mysterious woman and this time, she was walking right towards 
him. He put some tension on his bowstring, preparing to fire. The woman wasnt 
deterred by his wary stance. When she came within a few feet of him, Swift Coyote 
could clearly make out her entire body. Her erect nipples, the short field of dark hair 
cupped in the vee of her womanhood, even her youthful, pretty face and the conniving 
smirk upon it. But it was far too dark for him to actually see such things. He soon 
realized that the magical woman was feeding the fine details of her appearance 
directly into his mind.

When she stepped within striking distance, Swift Coyote tried to raise his arrow so 
that it was aimed right between her eyes. But his arms would not obey; they just 
trembled in hesitation. The woman gently caressed his hand holding the bow, and 
pushed it out of her way. In a flash of weakness, the seasoned warrior released both 
his bow and the arrow, letting them both clatter to the hardwood floor.

The woman smiled at him, grabbed his hand and guided it on to one of her tits. It was 
abnormally cold, but delightfully supple. As he began to lightly squeeze, she ran her 
fingers across his rock-hard pecks and purred approvingly.

He could simply tell that the woman was an extremely sinister presence. Inside, she 
was pure darkness, unafflicted by anything even resembling virtue. But her comely 
facade overpowered his reason with the basest notions. He was a red-blooded man! 
He was supposed to spill his wild oats in her pliant flesh! Beneath his breechcloth, 
the warriors lance stood at full attention.

With the lightest touch, the woman loosened his belt and let the fabric covering his 
maleness fall away. Swift Coyote knew that if he succumbed to her wiles, it would 
condemn his spirit. He tried to back away from her, but she matched him step-for-
step, until eventually she had him pinned against a wall with nowhere left to run. She 
embraced him loosely around the neck and pressed her lips against his in a joyless 
kiss. He reached for his hunting knife, but couldnt bring himself to draw it from its 
sheath  her hold over him was just too great.

When Swift Coyote felt her tepid, moist labia sliding back and forth along his shaft, it 
sent mixed shivers of arousal and terror up his spine. He knew it was now or never! 
He had to prevent their abhorrent union at all costs! He focussed on thoughts of Nina. 
Nina was warm. Nina was loving, kind, clever, passionate, true, exciting, brave and 
beautiful - everything that this... thing was not. Nina was a bringer of new life. Nina 
could fill his heart with joy by her simple presence. He loved Nina  too much to 
consort with this affront to everything she believed in. He loved Nina.
He loved Nina
He loved Nina

Just as his manhood started going flaccid, the woman slipped his cockhead between 
her inner lips. Before she could go any further, Swift Coyote summoned all his will, 
laid his hands upon the womans shoulders and pushed her away. After staggering a 
few paces backwards, the woman regained her balance and stared at Swift Coyote 
with a pout of disappointment. She almost seemed hurt by his rejection of her.
From the chamber entrance came the sound of racing footsteps, growing louder by the 
second.

Swift Coyote? a familiar voice called, with a hint of concern. Swift Coyote? A 
comforting yellow glow began to pour into the chamber and within seconds, Levinia 
raced through the doorway, candelabra in hand.

Swift... she began, before noticing the naked young woman standing before Swift 
Coyote, who was visibly distressed. Instantly recognizing the woman as a malevolent 
presence, Levinia extended her hand and cast wave after wave of offensive magic at 
her. The magic seemed to do little more than jostle the woman around. But regardless, 
it proved enough of a nuisance to make her leave. 

Nerine, Nina and Demi arrived just in time to see the woman slink into a shadowy 
corner with a vindictive sneer and then disappear altogether.

Swift Coyote fell to the floor, breathing raggedly. Nerine and Nina rushed to his side 
while Levinia and Demi kept watch for any further dangers. Though he had scarcely 
moved a muscle, Swift Coyote had just fought an intense battle and he was exhausted, 
both physically and spiritually.

I dont sense any physical harm... No dark magic upon him, Nerine reported as she 
ran her hands across his skin. It seems he managed to keep her at bay.

Swift Coyote... Honey, are you okay? Nina asked him directly. In his weary state, 
the warrior was only able to look her in the eye and languidly nod his head. Nina 
smiled and embraced him.

Through tracing her fingers over Swift Coyotes body in seemingly random patterns, 
Nerine soon discovered the foreign fluid coating his manhood. Collecting a few drops 
of it on her fingertips, she bought the suspicious juices up to her nose and 
immediately cringed in disgust.

It smells of death, she remarked. We should cleanse his organ as soon as possible.

Who was she? Nina asked, to no one in particular.

I dont know, Levinia answered. But shes very powerful. I was hitting her with 
my most powerful offensive spells and they only seemed to tickle her.

Uhh... has anyone else noticed where we are? Demi asked with a sense of alarm. 
The others looked around and soon realized that they had been led right back to where 
theyd started  Functions Room B, the heart of the curse.

We cant spend the night in this place, Nerine said after a brief silence. Its much 
too dangerous. Can you walk? She asked Swift Coyote, who was already looking 
much healthier.

Yes, he replied.

Then we should move. 


------------------------------------

Woods near The Arnford, Holliston, NC
July 14th, 1931, 11:23pm.
After collecting their belongings, the witches and Swift Coyote left the hotel and 
ventured deep into the woods nearby. They kept walking until they reached an area of 
the forest where the trees were still alive and healthy. For this meant that they had left 
the area where the curse was at its most dangerous.

It was far too late for them to think about searching for accommodation in Holliston 
proper. The town was hostile enough in broad daylight. The local innkeepers would 
probably shoot at them if they came knocking on their doors at this hour. So the party 
agreed to spend the night in the forest. They were accustomed to sleeping outdoors, 
anyway.

They found a reasonably flat patch of ground and created a sacred circle around it, 
using large stones from the immediate vicinity. Then the witches cast several 
enchantments of protection upon the circle, just in case the mysterious woman from 
The Arnford decided to pay them a visit in the middle of the night. Though the 
witches had doubts that the basic spells they had used would hold her off if she truly 
wished to harm them.

Swift Coyote insisted on staying awake all night to keep watch. Nerine advised 
against it, as he needed to rest following his battle of wills with the seductress. But he 
would not be dissuaded. Nina volunteered to sit up with him.

Nerine, Demi and Levinia layed down to sleep within the sacred circle, while Swift 
Coyote and Nina sat upon a long, flat rock that formed part of the circles edge and 
watched over them. Before an hour had passed, Nina had fallen asleep, with her head 
resting on her lovers shoulder and her fingers entwined with his. The warrior smiled 
and gently kissed his beloved on her forehead. Without meaning to, he joined her in 
slumber shortly after.
