The Ghost of Northwood

The air inside the Northwood High archives was thick with the scent of decaying paper and a stillness that felt heavier than mere silence. Maya, her flashlight beam cutting a shaky path through the gloom, ran a gloved hand over a row of dusty yearbooks. Each one was a frozen snapshot of a time before the rot, before the shuffling horrors that now stalked these halls. Ben, his face grim and etched with exhaustion, stood guard by the door, his gaze constantly sweeping the shadowed corridors beyond.

“Anything?” he asked, his voice a low rumble that barely disturbed the oppressive quiet.

Maya shook her head, frustration tightening her chest. “Just… the usual. School plays, football games, prom pictures. It’s like a different universe.” She pulled out a thick binder labeled ‘Student Records – 20XX’. The date was faded, but it was the earliest she could find before the school’s official closure. “This is where it all started, Ben. This is where Z’s story begins, or at least, the story that led to this.”