A ghost's revenge (Patreon)

“What’s going on with me?” Crystal murmured to herself upon leaving the cemetery. Normally, she was a woman of resilience and grit. Sure, there was a fragility about her that was captivating to the people around her, but she could usually hold herself together. She had just come back from her grandmother's grave, a visit that was more emotional than she had anticipated, when a faint specter began to circle around her sobbing body. She felt like something was there, so she ended up leaving. She realized it wasn't just the grief that clung to her like a second skin here - it was something else, though she didn’t know what it was.

Crystal had every right to be afraid. For years, a presence haunted her grandmother’s grave. Amber was an entity attached to Crystal's family thanks to Linda, her dead grandmother. After Linda ruined Amber’s life by snitching on her for murder, the old ghost vowed to get her revenge. But a sudden fall and broken back led Amber to an early grave. So, she had been a silent observer for years, watching Crystal grow into the woman she was now while she haunted Linda for the rest of her days. But her attachment to the physical world had never weakened since Crystal's grandmother had passed away. Amber thought she would move on into the afterlife, yet she stayed with nothing but rage on her mind. 

But today had been different. In her desperation to move on, she had found a very similar aura hovering around Linda’s granddaughter. It was a warmth that pulled the ghost along, ultimately bringing her home. Once behind closed doors, a strange sensation pulled the ghost even closer, and Amber realized that there was something even better about Crystal’s body. While Linda remained hardheaded throughout her life, this young 20-year-old woman had a sadness in her.

That sadness was all the ghost needed to slip into her body without her knowing. The warmth felt so close to her old body when she was alive, and the familiarity made her learn that she could possibly become Crystal with time. It took some time, but the first signs of possession were subtle. A whisper in the back of Crystal’s mind, a fleeting shadow in the mirror, a chilling touch against her skin. Crystal, initially confused, soon realized she was not alone. 

Eventually, on one fateful night, a fight for control began. Crystal fought with everything she had. She recited mantras she learned in therapy, used sage to cleanse her apartment, and even sought the help of a local priest. But it seemed the more she resisted, the stronger Amber became. Her world began to crumble as Amber’s presence grew stronger, and the young woman eventually realized who this person was. The longer the ghost lingered inside of her, the more their memories melted together. It felt as though she was sinking into the depths of a dark ocean, her own body a shell she could no longer control.

Before long, Amber had successfully taken over Crystal's body. There was a cruel sort of triumph in Amber’s smile as she looked at Crystal's reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were the same gray, her hair the same shade of black, but the woman staring back was not Crystal. It was Amber.

The ghost loved being alive again. She ran her fingers through Crystal's hair, admired the youthful glow of her skin, and delighted in the beating of her heart. “Being alive is so fucking amazing,” she giggled through her new voice. “I can’t believe I have this hot body now. I can literally do anything I want. Fuck, I can’t wait to get chased around again.” She wore Crystal’s smile, laughed with Crystal’s voice, and moved with Crystal’s grace. It was her life now - Amber was alive again, or at least, as alive as a ghost could be. Meanwhile, Crystal could only watch helplessly as Amber went about living her life.