Odessa, Texas The small football town of Odessa was ready for the big celebration when the local high school won the big football game that night. The town wasn’t that big and football was pretty much all they had. All the hopes and dreams of everyone who lived there depended on the football team bringing them victory. As families had gathered on the streets to start the day, a man carrying decorations ran across two young girls playing jump rope. “Are you ready for the big celebration?” the man asked as Rhoda and Esther looked up with a creepy smile. “We are here to celebrate something,” Rhoda said. “The death of everyone in this town,” Esther told him as both pulled out knives. Screaming was heard all over the street as adults started falling over dead all over the place with slashed throats and impaled bodies. Henry and Mikey opened the door to the local coffee shop as Henry smirked while holding a crossbow. “Today’s special is a very painful death,” Henry said as he fired a bolt through a man’s forehead. As people were running outside, a man was tripped as he fell forward. He looked up to see a boy wearing a white porcelain mask. “No running in the streets, you’re breaking a rule,” Jude said as Joshua walked forward with a baseball bat and started hitting the man in the head. Not too far away, Danny Strode stood near a truck as children were being rounded up and tossed in. “Get as many as you can,” Danny said. “There are special plans for the children of this town. Hurry because the Nightmare Warriors are due to arrive soon. Our special guests must be greeted warmly.” * “So, what’s this hot tip?” John asked as the van headed toward Odessa. “And what was so important that we had to get up at midnight to get on the road?” “It’s the little douche nugget with a crossbow that tried to kill me at Westin Hills a while back,” Tommy said. “He was making trouble near Odessa, leaving a trail of bodies behind him with some friends.” “Henry Evans,” Jacob told them. “Not much on him besides the police report that he killed his infant brother and tried to get rid of the rest of the family before he was thrown off of a cliff. That’s where the story gets interesting because they never found the body, but there were reports that someone found him with his face split open like a watermelon at a Gallagher show. Some sick fuck stitched him back together and I guess by then what little shred of sanity he had was long gone. Outside of a few odd sightings, there’s nothing on the kid beyond that.” “And he wields a crossbow,” Max said. “And why did we leave Cody behind again? You know, the guy who actually knows to hit a target with said crossbow?” “Because he’s still broken,” John said. “You know how he reacted after everything that happened with Robbie Freeling*. I think Cody’s got PTSD from that and from being nearly being raped by those killer trees*.” (*Last issue and Nightmare Warriors #2 - TC) “I think he just needs time to recover,” Tommy told him. “He’ll be fine, we left Andy with him. What’s the worst that can happen?” * Cody Ingalls sat on the floor of the bedroom that he shared with Jacob Johnson. Cody was in his boxers, not having left the bedroom in over a week. His spirit had been broken ever since leaving the Freeling house only for things to get worse once he got home. he had several day-old stubble on his face as he had to constantly push his hair back from his eyes as he sulked. A knock came at the door as Andy Barclay slowly came in with a tray of food, setting it on the table as he looked around to see the laundry basket in the corner. “Well, at least you’ve been changing your underwear. That’s a positive sign and…” Andy looked at the hair on Cody’s chest. “Wait, how do you have so much chest hair? I can’t even grow one!” “I’m not hungry,” Cody whispered as he leaned his head back. “Hey, I worked hard to make that toast, you’re eating it,” Andy told him. “You have to leave the house sometime. Don’t you want to meet a nice girl or something? Or what if Bridget gets a concussion and decides to come back?” “Bridget’s not coming back,” Cody told him. “I checked her Facebook like I usually do in case she tried to re-friend me and…” Cody showed Andy his phone. “She’s engaged? And she’s marrying…,” Andy looked at the burly black man in the photo. “Holy shit, look at the muscles on that guy. He looks like he could kill you with one finger and use your pelt to make a winter coat for his future wife.” “It’s over,” Cody said sadly. “No girlfriend, I’ve got a Leprechaun bounty on my head, and I’m out of clean underwear as of today. I’ve got nothing left.” “Start going commando like I do,” Andy told him. “At least you’ve got your chest hair. Seriously, what do I have to eat to get mine to grow in like that? You’ve still got your friends. And you’ll find another girlfriend. When I’m old enough to actually date Carol Anne, we’ll double date!” “Go away,” Cody told him. “I just want to be alone.” “Fine,” Andy said. “But I’m going to get you out of this room.” * The van pulled onto the street as the team got out and looked around. “Look at that banner,” Jacob said as he pointed up. “They’re having a football celebration for the school football team.” “Some celebration, no one’s even around,” John told them as he reached inside his jacket for his .38 while listening around. “Hear that? It’s dead quiet in this town.” Tommy stopped to listen as well before he heard a noise. “Duck!” Tommy pushed Max out of the way just before a bolt landed on the wall in front of them. “It’s an ambush!” “Yeah, but where are they?” John asked as Esther rushed around the corner, cutting John’s arm with a knife before running away. Before they could rush to his aid, Joshua ran out, hitting Tommy in the back of the knee with a ball bat. “Kids? We’re being attacked by kids?” Tommy asked. “And they’re running off in different directions, they’re trying to separate us!” Jacob realized. “I say we get in the van and—“ As Jacob said that, two dump trucks arrived, dumping dead bodies right in front of the van. “Great, I guess we have to deal with these little bastards before we can get out of here,” Max said. “Stay together,” Tommy told them as he tried to wrap John’s arm with his torn shirt sleeve. “We don’t know how many of them there are.” “I count seven,” Jacob said. “I can hear their taunting in my head. Seven voices, all of them evil.” “And there’s only four of us,” John told them. “What do we do?” “We fucking fight these little demons,” Tommy answered. * “Andy isn’t with them,” Loomis said as he watched the team carefully walk down the street. “I need that boy before we can proceed. Kill the others, we’ll just go and get Andy ourselves. We’ve known where they’ve been hiding for quite some time, with no one else there we can grab him quite easily. Send the men and tell them to bring the boy alive and kill anyone else.” As Loomis said that, two robed guards stood outside, listening to everything being said. * “Hey, you can’t do this to me! Put me down!” Andy shouted as Cody had him over his shoulder as he carried him down the stairs. “I’ll kick your ass!” “Yeah, you’re great against killer dolls, but I’ve got two feet on you and more muscle. You weigh like, ten pounds,” Cody said. “I’m putting you outside until the others get home so you’ll stop bugging me.” “You know I can just climb through a window, right?” “Windows and doors are locked, there’s no getting back in,” Cody said as he carried Andy outside and prepared to throw him into the grass. As he got ready to toss Andy, Andy grabbed Cody’s boxers to to try to hold on as he was let go, tearing them as he flew forward into the yard. As he sat up, he realized he had what was left of Cody’s boxers in his hand. “AH!” Andy shouted as he tossed them away. “I’m going back inside,” Cody said, ignoring the fact that he was now nude as he went to open the closed door and the handle wouldn’t move. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?” “Where are your keys?” “In my pants,” Cody said through gritted teeth. “Upstairs.” * In Odessa, Esther and Rhoda were walking with knives as they stalked their prey. “The one I stabbed is cute,” Esther said. “Maybe I’ll keep that one alive as my personal pet. I always did like younger men.” As they walked, they didn’t realize John was right behind them with a jump rope in his hand. * Jude and Joshua were in the alley, having believed they’d followed Max down the alley. “He’s here,” Joshua said. “I’ll cripple him. You slash his throat.” “That’s messy, I have to keep my clothes clean,” Jude told him. “It’s against the rules to get my clothes dirty.” “You care about your appearance, I respect that,” Joshua as he stepped forward, falling through a portal. Jude stepped back as he fell into another portal, screaming as he fell. “Have fun in Detroit you psychotic little fucks,” Max said. * Henry continued firing bolts as Tommy, who grabbed a garbage can lid and flung it as hard as he could, hitting Mikey when he tried for a running attack. “What made you little morons decide to team up?” Tommy asked as Henry to reload, but Tommy was already on him. “Jealous of our team?” “No, it had nothing to do with the money, you idiot!” Henry shouted as the two started wrestling. “Getting paid to kill people? Best job ever!” “Paid? By who?” Tommy asked as he punched Henry. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Henry asked as he kneed Tommy in the groin. As he fell to the ground, Henry started running. “You won’t live long enough to find out!” Mikey started running after Henry, but Tommy grabbed him by the leg, tripping him up. “No you don’t!” Tommy shouted, putting his arm around Mikey’s throat. “You’re going to answer some questions, kid.” “I’ll kill you!” Mikey shouted. “Let me go!” “After you fill me in on some things,” Tommy told him as he pushed Mikey toward the street as he saw John. “You deal with the Shining twins?” “Tied up in the alley back there,” John said as he saw Max. “Yours taken care of?” “Sent them to the closest thing to Hell I could think of,” Max said. “Where’s Jacob?” “I think I saw him chasing the last kid to the park,” * Jacob arrived at the park and headed toward a tree. “I can sense you here, you know. Your willingness to shed innocent blood is like a homing beacon.” As he rounded the tree, Jacob quickly jumped back before a falling scythe could finish him. As he recognized Danny, Jacob just smirked. “The Cult did a good job of shielding you from my powers, I can only see small glimpses of what they’re planning,” Jacob told him. “What do you want with Andy?” “We want him to come home,” Danny said as he attacked in as Jacob took a deep breath and used a sonic scream to blast him back. “He is my best friend after all. He belongs to me, the Cult gave him to me to use as I please.” “He’s a person,” Jacob said as he jumped over Danny and used a spin kick to knock him off balance. “He’s finally becoming a normal kid again. The Cult’s never getting their hooks in him again.” “We’ll see once you and your friends are dead,” Danny said as he went to punch Jacob, who caught his arm and kneed him in the chest. “My friends have already beaten your crew,” Jacob informed him. “They’re on their way here now.” Danny started laughing. “Fool, we weren’t sent here to beat you, we were sent here to lure you into a trap so you could be murdered correctly.” “Jacob!” Tommy shouted as Jacob turned. When he looked back, Danny was gone. “Are you okay?” “It’s a trap!” Jacob shouted. “We gotta get out of here now!” “What are you talking about?” John asked as a rumbling started. A van nearby opened all around as a swarm of drones rose up and flew over them. “There have to dozens of them!” Max shouted as they revealed hidden weapons. “I’ll never open a portal in time to get us all through!” “We’ll be swiss cheese in seconds!” Tommy told them as the revving of a motorcycle was heard. The group turned to see a custom-built Harley spin to a stop as a man in black leather stepped off. He had a black motorcycle helmet on as he picked up a shoulder-mounted bazooka and aimed it at the boys. “Well, it was nice knowing you guys. See everyone in Hell in a minute.” “Why am I going to Hell?” Jacob asked. “The mountain of kleenex in the trash for one,” Tommy told him. “You’ve destroyed more sperm than a vasectomy clinic.” Without saying a word, the man suddenly aimed up at the drones and fired a ball over the machines. The ball exploded as thousands of tiny magnetized machines attached to themselves to the drones as they showered down. The man then pressed a detonator as a magnetic surge went through all the drones, causing a massive EMP surge that caused every drone to fall into the grass. * “What was that?” Loomis shouted as he watched the monitor. “The Nightmare Warriors should be dead! I thought the other two stayed behind! Who is that!” “Should we send more drones?” a robed man asked. “No, we’ve wasted enough resources, these fools will die another day,” Loomis told them. “We’ve only truly lost Andy for today, but we got the other thing we came for. Prepare the subjects for the test before we lose any more time.” * “Everything’s locked,” Andy said as he returned to the back of the house. “And the alarms are probably set, too. So we’d have to deal with poisoned darts and all those Home Alone style death traps if we tried to break in.” “I just wanted to be left alone,” Cody said as he sat down on the patio. “I’m quitting the team.” “Why? Just because Bridget dumped you for something bigger? Someone, I mean,” “It’s everything,” Cody told him. “Bridget, Robbie being slaughtered, having a Leprechaun bounty on my head… I’m just 16 and I’ve lost the love of my life and probably my life itself. And now I’m sitting here naked and locked out of the house. Life was just a lot easier when I was a kid on the streets trying to keep other guys from hitting on my girlfriend.” “Don’t forget you’re still wanted for murder,” Andy told him. “Yeah, life sucks. But it sucks for all of us, that’s why we’re here. We’ve all lost people we care about. My Aunt Maggie was really important to me and… the night she died I had to keep myself from crying so I could be strong for my mom. I stopped crying when I was upset except for when I knew I was alone because I had to be stronger if I wanted to survive.” Cody put an arm around him. “You’ve been dealing with this shit since you were six. Sometimes I forget how young you are. You don’t have to hold it in, kid. You need to cry, come see me. You can cry all you want, I’ve got a shoulder for you to do it on.” “So you’re going to stay?” “For a little while at least, until I get my name cleared and this tattoo off of my wrist,” Cody said as he looked at the four leave clover tattooed on his arm. “Really should see if I can find a guy that can remove curses.” A few raindrops hit Cody’s forehead as he looked up just the should of thunder was heard. Rain started pouring as he stood up. “Figures. Let’s find shelter before we catch pneumonia.” * “When I get out of here, you are so dead!” Mikey shouted as he was shoved into the van with his hands bound behind his back. “You won’t because we let you, you’re all going to be slaughtered!” “Pipe down,” Jacob said as he shoved one of Mikey’s socks into his mouth. “Let’s get this freakshow home so we can torture him.” “Hang on,” Tommy said as he approached the man on the motorcycle. “Who the hell are you?” The man removed his helmet to reveal his reddish blonde hair as he looked at the four men. “John Connor, and I just saved your asses,” “And how exactly did you know to come here?” Tommy asked. “Because the Cult of Thorn has all of us on their shit list,” Connor told him. “And unless we do something, I think they’re going to destroy the world and bring on a whole new Judgement Day. As of now, they might be in a race with Skynet to wipe out humanity.” * Andy found a blanket and brought it to Cody, who was by now shivering in the cold. “Take it, you need it more.” “I’m sorry I got so upset,” Cody said as his voice shook with cold as he wrapped the blanket around his shoulders. “I just… I loved Bridget. I thought we were going to be together forever. Just the thought of her marrying another guy… I mean, I saved her from a Leprechaun for cryin’ out loud. She’d be pushing out a liter of Leprechauns if I hadn’t come for her.” “I’ll bet baby Leprechauns are adorable,” Andy said as he sat down. “She was just a girl, though. You’ll find another one.” “I don’t want another one,” Cody told him. “I want the one. The one who loved me despite being a poor kid conning his way through life. She helped me make friends, she stood up for me against the people who said I was just a street punk that’ll never go anywhere. She meant everything to me. I would have died for her.” “That’s sweet,” Andy said as he slapped Cody. “Get over her, she’s gone. We need your head in the game! We’ve got undead murderers, dream stalkers, killer dolls, and Leprechauns coming for us! You gotta focus or we’re all going to die!” “You’re right,” Cody said. “I just— I don’t know how to deal with losing someone else that I care about.” “You’ll find a way,” Andy said as the rain stopped. “I think my bedroom window’s unlocked. I can climb the trellis and get in.” “Just be careful, I don’t want you to fall and break your neck,” Cody told him. “Once you get up there, toss me down my pants and some shoes.” “Got it,” Andy said as he headed for the house as Cody stood there. Seconds later, sounds of fighting were heard. Cody dropped the blanket and ran out, seeing a group of men holding Andy. “Put the kid down!” Cody shouted as he grabbed a metal pole as the men started laughing. “Or what? Is fighting naked your superpower?” the man asked as Cody found himself surrounded. “No, this is!” Cody swung the pole and started attacking the men, quickly knocking them all to the ground. “And because you’re such dicks, I’m gonna t-bag all of you!” A shot rang out, hitting Cody in the shoulder as the last man held onto Andy. He walked toward Cody as he lay in the grass as Andy struggled in his grip. He aimed the gun as Andy screamed. “NO!” Andy shouted. “Leave him alone and… I’ll come peacefully.” “You were already my prisoner,” the man said as Andy dropped the pocket knife he’d pulled out of his pocket. “He lives and you live.” The man put the gun away as Cody stared up at Andy. “Why?” “Because you’re my friend and I don’t want to see anyone else I care for die, either,” Andy told him as he was led away. “I’ll save you,” Cody said as he passed out. * Max and John picked up a dead body and carried it out of the way of the van. “You know we’re gonna get blamed for this slaughter,” John said. “Not like Tommy and Cody aren’t already wanted for murder,” Jacob said. “Probably Max, too for those people Jason Voorhees killed at Crystal Lake. I’ve got an amber alert on me since the police think Tommy kidnapped me and Andy’s considered a runaway. Just another reason for the police and feds to hunt us.” “So here’s my question,” Max asked. “Where are all the kids? Think about it? Everybody we’ve come across is an adult or late teenager that could fight these pricks. So where are all the younger kids?” “The Cult might have picked them for something,” John told them. “The sooner we this asshole back to question him, the better.” “So, Connor,” Tommy said as they cleared the way to their van. “What’s your story?” “I’ll tell you on the way to get your friends,” Connor told them. “I need your help to make sure that Judgement Day doesn’t come.” TO BE CONTINUED…
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The Toyland Warehouse
Two Years Ago Well after midnight in the old toy warehouse, the only light to be found came from a few handheld lanterns as three strangers continued to dig through the concrete and dirt on the first floor. They had figured where to dig because it had been marked by a large pentagram. “How much longer do we have to dig? My arm’s getting tired,” “It wasn’t too tired to take out that security guard with your ball bat,” Just inside the door, a man lay on the floor with his head bashed in. “That was fun, though. This is work,” “Just shut up and keep digging. The sooner we get this thing dug up the sooner we can get paid. I can’t believe we got loaned out to do this this kind of menial labor.” “Just think about the payday when this is over. Plus, you know, we get to survive the coming apocalypse. Hey, I think I found it! Help me dig right here!” After twenty minutes of digging, a decomposed demonic looking skeleton had been pulled up from the ground. “Gross. What do we do with it now?” “What we’re paid to do with it,” * A ‘for sale’ sign sat in the front yard of the recently purchased Freeling house in Connetticutt. The family had yet to move in but they’d be there in a few days with their things as they drove from California. Having broken in, the trio headed to the basement and created a hole in the wall in which to bury the skeleton before resealing the hole. “So now what?” “That’s it, apparently we have to give this little demon bastard time to do whatever he needed to do once we buried him. Then the fun begins.” * Three Months Earlier The dark-haired boy and the fair-haired boy sat in a playroom, playing their continuous games as both were eternally stuck in the room. At least until an opportunity presented itself. “I win,” the dark-haired boy said. “I win,” the fair-haired boy said. “War,” the two said in unison, only this time there was something different about the room. The dark-haired boy raised his head and smirked. “Well, it’s been fun brother, but I believe I’ll step out for a bit,” the Kid said. “You stay here and keep our company entertained.” Before the fair-haired boy could react, Jack-Attack, a demonic Jack-in-the-Box wrapped itself around the boy’s neck and started biting him while laughing madly. “Well, it’s about fucking time!” Baby Oopsy Daisy said as he crawled out from under the bed holding a whip. “We’ve been waiting forever to get out of the toy box!” As the robotic Mr. Static ripped the back of the boy’s shirt, Baby Oopsie Daisy started hitting him with the whip. As the boy screamed, Grizzly Teddy started biting his arm. “Keep him contained,” the Kid ordered as he went to open the door. “When he regenerates, start from the beginning. The next time you see me, I’ll be holding his precious true love’s heart. What’s left, anyway, I haven’t eaten in centuries.” As The Kid exited, Baby Oopsie Daisy smirked. “Alright, guys, everyone grab a leg and pull! We’re gonna make a wish when he snaps.” * Now John Strode struggled to pull the demonic clown doll off of his face as the clown giggled madly. “Get off of me you little bastard!” John shouted as he finally pulled free while attempting to catch his breath. Before the doll could attack again John threw it as hard as he could against the wall on the other side of the room. As the clown hit the wall it shattered into a hundred smaller clowns, all of them giving an evil laugh as they charged toward John. “Oh, fuck me.” * Andy Barclay, Max Madison and Robbie Freeling entered the house just in time to see the downed bookcase with Tommy’s boots sticking out. “Help me lift this!” Max shouted as they lifted the bookcase only to find Tommy’s boots and nothing else. “Where are the others? Jacob? Cody?” Andy went to the couch and found Tangina’s necklace. As he picked it up he felt how cold the couch was. “I think Kane got everyone,” A noise came from the kitchen as the trio ran in to see the giant maggot as it had Cody swallowed halfway into its gullet. “Cody!” Max shouted as he went grab his legs, but the maggot quickly finished swallowing him before diving back to the refrigerator where door quickly slammed. Max picked up Cody’s crossbow and looked around. “Not good, so not good.” “Where’s Carol Anne?” Robbbie asked as a pounding came from the basement door. He to open it as Carol Anne flew into his arms. Robbie offered a comforting hug to his sister as Dana came out. “It’s alright, I’m here.” “They got Scott,” Dana said. “I’m pretty sure Kane has everyone but us now,” Max told them. “What are we going to do?” “Well, technically your’e the leader now,” Andy told him. “What do you want do do?” “I want to go get our friends,” Max said angrily. “But how do we follow them if Jacob’s the one with the powers?” “Your hat,” Andy told him. “Can’t we follow them with that?” “To another plane of existence?” Max asked. “I have no idea where to even begin!” “The necklace,” Robbie said as he grabbed Tangina’s necklace. “What if you use this to home in on Kane? It’s what beat him the last time.” “Alright,” Max said. “Andy, we’re going to kick some ass on the other side.” “I’m going, too,” Robbie said. “My parents are over there, too. I have to save them.” “I’m going, too,” Carol Anne told him. “I’m through with Kane pushing me around. I want to end this once and for all.” “Count me in,” Dana said. “We do this as a family.” “Everyone hang on,” Max said as everyone joined hands. “We all come home or no one comes home.” Max focused his thoughts as a portal opened in the wall with a fog coming through. “Keep your hands linked, we all stay together,” Andy said as he realize his hand was linked with Carol Anne’s. “We can do this.” “You’re scared,” Carol Anne said as she looked at him. “Of course I am, those are my brothers that Kane has trapped,” Andy told her. “Look, I like you and I don’t want you to lose your family either , but these guys… they’ve been my family for a while. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost them. I’m actually looking for reasons to not drink now that I know what I can lose.” Carol Anne tightened her grip on Andy’s hand as they walked through the portal into a dark realm where there appeared to only be a single source of light at the end of a dark road. “I hate haunted houses,” Robbie said. * On another plane, Will’s broken and beaten body felt a sudden surge of energy. “Max,” Will whispered as he sensed Max’s presence on the other side. “Get out of here.” Will slowly started to try to stand, his ankle snapping from his injuries as he leaned on a dresser. “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” Baby Oopsie Daisy asked as he jumped onto Will’s back while holding a knife. “Playtime isn’t over yet!” “Yes… it… is!” Will shouted as his love for Max gave him a renewed energy. His body started to glow with a bright light as he aged into his young adult form before grabbing Baby Oopsie Daisy and pulling his head off. “Hey, that’s not fair!” Baby Oopsie Daisy shouted as his head rolled under the bed as the other Demonic Toys attacked. “Don’t worry, Max, I’m coming to save you,” Will said as he went to fight the rest of the toys. * “We should have brought a flashlight,” Max said as he led the group. “Everyone okay?” “Yeah,” Andy said. “It’s just really cold on this side. Carol Anne’s hand is like ice.” “I was going to say the same to you,” Carol Anne said as they got closer to the light where she looked over and saw she was the holding the hand of a rotting corpse. Andy realized the same as both started screaming before the corpse backhanded Andy several yards away into a wall before grabbing Carol Anne. “Leave her alone!” Dana shouted as more corpses started grabbing them. Meanwhile The Kid started laughing as he stepped in. “Now the entertainment really begins!” the Kid shouted. “Think this is funny?” Andy asked as he punched The Kid in the jaw. “How about now?” The Kid turned his head back and spit blood on Andy’s shirt, which was like acid. Andy felt it burning through as he quickly pulled his shirt off before being backhanded to the ground. “You care about the girl,” the Kid said as he kicked Andy onto his stomach. “Is she worth dying for?” “Yes,” Andy said as The Kid’s razor sharp nails started scratching Andy down his back, leaving deep cuts as blood started pouring out. He started screaming in pain as The Kid laughed. “Your screams are like music to my ears, let’s keep the song going, shall we?” the Kid asked as his nails dug deeper. “Give the girl up and I may let you live long enough to see me rip your heart out and take a bite.” “Never,” Andy said, trying to hold back the pain. “You’ll have to kill me first.” “I can accept those terms,” the Kid said as he got ready to finish him. “Take a bite of this, demon breath!” Robbie shouted hit the Kid in the head with a block of ice. He went to punch The Kid when his arm was caught before his fist could connect. “You want my sister? You gotta go through me!” “If you insist,” the Kid said as he twisted Robbie’s arm, causing it snap with a horrifying sound as the bone broke through the skin. Robbie screamed in agonizing pain as The Kid ripped his arm with glee, tossing it away. “ROBBIE!” Carol Anne shouted as The Kid lifted Robbie up by his neck. “You should have left while you had the chance,” the Kid told him. “I had to save my family,” Robbie said. “I’m not a coward.” “Well, this has been fun, but I have a train to catch,” the Kid said as he used his nails to reach into Robbie’s chest, slowly ripping his heart out as blood squirted spewed forward. He held the bleeding heart out and let his tongue catch the dripping blood. “The fear is so delicious.” Carol Anne and Dana screamed as The Kid tossed Robbie’s dead body away as the corpses held Max and Andy. The Kid smiled as he looked at Dana. “I’ll be with you momentarily to eat your baby’s soul, but first I have a soulmate to rip apart.” As The Kid headed toward Max, someone landed in a heroic pose in-between them. Will stood up wearing golden angelic armor. “Leave him alone,” Will ordered. “Will?” Max asked. “It’s me,” Will smiled as he turned to Max. “I’ll explain everything, but first I need to take care of my half-brother.” Max pulled Will close and gave him a good luck kiss as Will touched his cheek. “I’ll be right back.” “Touching,” the Kid said. “I’ll let you keep his spine as a souvenir.” Will flew toward The Kid as they collided, trading punches as they tossed each other around. Meanwhile, Carol Anne had pulled a heavily bleeding Andy into her arms as Andy slipped into unconsciousness as Dana had found Robbie, cradling his dead body as his eyes remained wide open. “Carol Anne,” a voice said through the heavy mist. “We need you Carol Anne.” The girl looked up to the shadow of Reverend Kane coming through the mist that was now all around them. “If I go with you, will you let my family go?” “Oh, yes,” Kane promised. “We just want you, precious child. Only you.” “Okay,” Carol Anne said. “I’ll go and—“ “No, Carol Anne!” Robbie shouted as he appeared near the light, now dressed in a white suit with his arm intact. “You don’t have to do this.” “Robbie?” Carol Anne asked. “You’re alive?” “No,” Robbie told her. “I’ve crossed over. I’m apart of the other side now and I can lead this stupid dick and his people into the light instead.” “No!” Carol Anne said as she cried into Robbie’s arms. “I don’t want you to go! I need you!” “It’s okay,” Robbie said as he comforted her. “I’ll always be here watching over you. I finally know that I can do something important to save my family. I always felt I wasn’t special and I wasn’t important to anyone. But now I do this and make sure you get to live your life.” “Will I ever see you again?” “Someday,” Robbie promised. “Tell Mom and Dad goodbye for me. Dana, take care of that baby. Andy’s a good guy, Carol Anne. Don’t write him off just yet.” “I won’t,” Carol Anne said as she hugged him one last time. “Come on, you withered old dick, get your shit so we can move out,” Robbie said as the light started to get brighter. Kane and his followers started heading toward the light as Robbie looked back one more time. “Take care, little sister.” As Robbie disappeared into the light with Kane and his followers, Will and The Kid came crashing through the corridor. Will lifted his half-brother up by his neck. “I’m the strong one now,” Will said. “Now you get to spend the rest of eternity trapped in your room.” “Never,” the Kid said as he disappeared in a red demonic energy. “Next time we meet, I win.” As Will looked around, he saw more forms coming through the mist. Steve, Diane, Scott, Tangina, and Tommy’s team had awakened and were making their way through. Will kneeled down to Andy and gently touched his back to heal his wounds. “A good night’s rest and he’ll be as good as new,” Will said as he stood up to face Max. “Uh… I guess you should you know that I’m an angel.” Max hugged him tightly. “I’m sorry, Will! I never wanted you to get hurt! I should have fought harder!” “It’s alright, Max,” Will replied softly. “I’m just glad you made it out of there.” “Are you able to come home?” Max asked hopefully. “No,” Will said sadly. “I can’t come back to Earth until I have a new body, but there are… rules I have to follow so a new body is legit. But I promise I will find a way back to you. I love you, Max.” The two shared a kiss as Will’s body disappeared in a bright light. Jacob and Cody held onto Max as Tommy scooped Andy up. “Can we go home? I think there’s a lot explaining to do.” Aurie stumbled out of the mist as John put an arm around his shoulder. “I imagine you have a lot of questions.” “Let’s start with ‘where am I?’.” Max handed Tangina her necklace. “This is yours I believe.” “No, child, it’s yours,” Tangina told him as she put the necklace back into Max’s hand. “Use the power well, along with the cap’s magic. With the power of the Dream Master, you’ll be able to open up whole new worlds.” * Hours later, Andy stood in the bathroom staring at his back while in front of the mirror. “Will healed my wounds, but it still feels weird,” Andy said as he examined his repaired back. “It just really tickles.” “Hey, you’re not dead,” Jacob told him. “Don’t knock it. Get dressed so we can head out. You have one last chance with Carol Anne, don’t blow it.” “Actually, I’m just gonna leave well enough alone,” Andy said as he grabbed his t-shirt. “She just lost her big brother and she’s probably traumatized. I mean, I really do care about her, but trying to take advantage of her emotions right now… that’d be a real dick move. I want her to like me for me, you know? Not the drunken asshole I’ve been or the guy who’s just trying to hit on her because Robbie’s gone. Like John said, if it’s meant to happen, it’ll happen. If not, I guess I have to deal. Probably a lesson I need to learn about everything in my life. Danny, my Mom, I guess I have a lot of dealing to do.” “I’m proud of you, kid,” Jacob said as he patted Andy’s shoulder before leaving. “We’re saying our goodbyes now. See you downstairs.” As Jacob left, he passed Carol Anne standing outside the door. “Your brother was a good guy,” Jacob told her. “I’m sorry he’s gone.” * “Are you sure you and the baby are alright?” Scott asked. “Should we go to the hospital to check you out?” “I told you, I’m okay,” Dana told him. “I have a feeling Robbie’s looking out for our baby now, where ever he is.” “Mr. and Mrs. Freeling, I’m terribly sorry about your son,” Tommy told them. “He was a strong kid.” “Would have made one hell of a team member,” Max told her. “He saved my life and Andy’s back there. As far as I’m concerned, he’s always going to be one of us.” “Robbie saved everyone,” Diane said. “We’re going to give him a proper sendoff in a few days once Tangina is sure we’re safe.” “This house is clean,” Tangina told them as she walked in, seeing Jacob walking down the stairs. “There’s no spectral energy from Kane or his followers.” “What about that demon kid?” Jacob asked. “He was a nasty customer.” “He won’t be back,” John said as he walked in with a garbage bag. “Dug up that demon skeleton Tangina sensed when we came back. We’ll bury this thing with holy water in a field on the way home. He won’t be haunting this family again. I’ll go see if Max and Cody are ready to roll.” * Max found Cody sitting out back with his arms around his legs. “You’re still shaking,” Max told him. “Are you going to be okay?” “He was 16,” Cody whispered. “He was our age and he was just… torn apart like he was nothing. OUR AGE, Max. I mean, we’ve faced lots of deadly shit, but Robbie was just a regular kid that didn’t want anything to do with this life. He wanted to get his family away from this and just move on with his life. He could have walked away before we dragged him back here. He could have lived.” “He wouldn’t have been able to live with himself if he left his sisters at the mercy of Kane and that demonic little bastard,” Max said as he sat down and put an arm around Cody’s shoulder. “He died doing what was right.” “But he was normal,” Cody told him. “He didn’t have dream powers or a special hat or ties to a killer doll or dream slashing ghoul. He was a normal guy that went to school and played sports and had a loving family. He didn’t deserve to go out like that.” “I know,” Max told him. “It stings knowing what he could have accomplished.” “It’s more than that,” Cody said. “I’ve got a curse on my head, Max. Jacob’s being hunted by Freddy. The Cult and Chucky are probably both gunning for Andy right now. Any of us could die at any moment without warning and it… scares me knowing that my brothers could die horribly and I might not be able to do anything about it,” Cody said as a tear fell from his eye. “I don’t want to lose my new family.” “You won’t,” Max promised. “Especially me. I’m never leaving my best friend. We’re together until the end.” “At least you have an angel boyfriend,” Cody laughed a little. “I’m sure he’s working on a way to come back to you right now.” * Will sat in the playroom he’d spent his entire life in, sitting in a chair next to a bed as a teenage boy rolled over and moaned while opening his eyes. “Is this heaven?” “No,” Will told him. “We’re on an etherial plane of existence.” “What are we doing here?” “Waiting,” “For what?” “Until we’re needed,” Will told Robbie as the boy started to sit up. “You made a sacrifice to save someone you love. That makes you special, and… someone noticed. I don’t know who, but someone has plans for us and maybe others. I guess for right now we just have to wait until that someone decides to put us back in the game.” “What do we do in the meantime?” “Want to play card games? Anything but ‘War’.” * Andy finally emerged from the bathroom and saw Carol Anne standing there. “Were you waiting for me this whole time?” “I just wanted to say thanks for being my brother’s friend,” Carol Anne told him. “I’m glad he had friends at the end.” “He died because we brought him back,” “He died because he knew he couldn’t leave us in trouble,” Carol Anne told him. “Plus you did save me, so thank you.” Before he could say anything, Carol Anne kissed his cheek. “Get sober and clean yourself up, Andy. When I’m 16 and can date, maybe we can go out to a movie.” “I’d like that,” Andy told her as he blushed. “Your brother was one of us, so I guess that makes you a Nightmare Warrior, too. If you ever need my— our— help, give us a call. Wait, what about Aurie? Kane grabbed him because he had feelings for you.” “Aurie’s cute, but… he’s not my type,” Carol Anne said as she mussed his hair. “I like Good Guys,” before Andy could say anything, she started to walk away. “I do my research.” “You Googled me?” “See you in four years, Andy Barclay,” Carol Anne said as she headed downstairs. * “Dream Master, you must face your fears soon,” Tangina warned Jacob as he put his gear into the van. “Before Freddy becomes too powerful. He’s on the verge of getting everything he needs. If he escapes the boundaries of Springwood, he’ll be unstoppable.” “How do I do that?” Jacob asked. “I’m terrified of going back there.” “Your reason for going back is waiting for you there,” Tangina told him. “Good luck. You have nearly everyone you need to help you on your journey. Let the blind child guide you when he arrives.” “The blind chi— what the hell are you talking about?” Jacob asked as he turned back to see Tangina was already gone. “Great, now I have that to worry about.” “Everyone ready to go?” Tommy asked as everyone got in. “Let’s go home after we get rid of this demon skeleton. Then maybe we can get a round of drinks and toast our fallen member. Robbie would have made a great teammate. I guess we could make an exception for Andy to drink tonight, just this once.” “I’ll have soda, thanks,” Andy told them. “I have a reason to get sober now. I just hope she waits for me.” “It’s amazing what getting your first boner can do for your sobriety. We’ll keep you on track, buddy,” Jacob promised him as the van drove down the street. “You know something? It actually was my first one,” Andy told him. “I’ll give you some tips on how to deal with them when we get home,” Jacob told him. “Damn, we’re going to have to buy more kleenex on the way home,” John said under his breath. As they headed for the freeway, the van passed Aurie, who waved goodbye as he smirked. “Good riddance,” Aurie told them as his voice turned demonic briefly. “I lost my powers when I took possession of this form, but I have a body now. And once I find a way to regain my powers, blood’s really gonna run.” * Haddonfield, Illinois In an underground bunker, a man arrived by elevator to find his people hard at work on their next project. He walked past the remnants of a Stonehenge monument and into a room where his associates sat. “Everything is going according to plan,” a man told him. “Within 72 hours, the targets will be dead.” “Excellent.” Dr. Loomis told him. “Tommy Jarvis and his friends have done enough damage to our operations. It’s time that his ‘Nightmare Warriors’ be eradicated. Are our soldiers ready?” “Yes, sir,” As they looked through a plate glass window into the next room they saw 7 teenagers standing on a stage with wires attached to them. Henry Evans, Rhoda Penmark, Mikey Bonsall, Esther Coleman, Joshua Cairn, and Jude Convery. Danny Strode stood near them while holding a scythe, waiting for them to awaken. “Then activate The Children of the Cult,” Loomis said as the sleeping teenagers slowly opened their eyes. “Let the death of the Nightmare Warriors begin.” TO BE CONTINUED… Fairfield, Connecticut
13-year-old Aurie Davis, a young man from the neighborhood, pushed the lawnmower through the grass on a warm spring day. The Freelings had paid him to keep up the yard, and he had earned every cent of the ten dollars they paid him every week to keep the grass trimmed and the liter off of the lawn. However lately he had a feeling that someone had been watching him while he worked. Maybe it was the Freeling’s youngest daughter, who was around Aurie’s age. Or it could be the old pervert across the street he was warned to stay away from, which is why he never took off his shirt, even on the hottest day. As the young man finished mowing the lawn, he started dragging the lawnmower back to the shed, smiling at Carol Anne through the window. He did think the 12-year-old Carol Anne was cute, but he’d also heard the strange rumors about the family that made him cautious. But 10 bucks a week was enough to get him to at least do odd jobs around the house. As Aurie waved to the girl in the window, he heard what felt like a ghostly howl in the wind. Maybe in due time he’d work up the nerve to ask Carol Anne to sit with him at lunch at school. If that worked out, maybe he could ask her out to a movie some night. Another ghostly howl in the breeze caused his hair to stand on end as he unlocked the shed. “It was nothing,” Aurie thought as he opened the shed, just as a rake fell from the corner, nearly hitting him. He jumped back, his heart racing a little. Aurie slowly picked up the rake and put it back before closing the shed and locking it while feeling a cold chill run down his neck. As he looked around to make sure no one else was around, he walked past the garage and through a large puddle of water. As soon as his sneaker touched the water, it started to glow as the young man fell through the now deep water, which was at least a dozen feet deep. He kept trying to climb out as a pair of clammy gray hands popped up, grabbing him around the neck and hair. “Carol Anne is MINE!” the echoing voice shouted as the boy was dragged deep under the water. The water stopped glowing and returned to a regular water puddle again that stood less than an inch, with only a single white sneaker covered in ice remaining on the driveway… * Iowa Tangina, a shorter, older woman with a blue necklace around her neck, had been looking at produce when she dropped a bunch of bananas when a feeling hit her. A powerful psychic who had once used her powers to help those in need of supernatural help, Tangina had long since retired to a life of peace in Iowa, although sometimes she did offer aid to those who needed it. It had been years since she’d had contact with the Freelings, but today a powerful surge of psychic energy hit her. “He’s found her. I must hurry before it’s too late.” Nightmare Warriors #8 “Poltergeist Who’s Coming To Dinner” Nebraska On a quiet night in a small town, the people were going about their business, never really having experienced truly out of the ordinary. Until tonight. The night where two teenage boys suddenly came running out of a building, chasing a fast slithering snake while holding weapons. “Get back here, you little son of a bitch!” Cody Ingalls shouted as he chased after the snake with a crossbow. “Hold still!” Cody pushed past the people on the street as he gave chase while his prey quickly slithered toward an alley. “Excuse me, pardon me. Oh, that’s a nice hat! My girlfriend has the same one.” “Your ex-girlfriend,” Max reminded him as he followed Cody up the street before stopping. “Alright, this is getting us nowhere. Gotta stop that snake before it hitches a ride in a new body. Cody, get ready!” Max eyed the snake as his hat started to glow with bright white energy. A portal opened in front of the snake, which slithered through while another portal opened in front of Cody, who aimed his crossbow at the snake. “Come to daddy,” Cody smiled as the snake slithered through. Cody fired the sharpened arrow, cutting the snake in half as it shrieked in painful terror. The people around just stared as Cody looked around. “Oh, yeah, sorry, we’re exterminators. Just clearing out the pests, folks, no need to worry, we’re professionals.” Cody scooped up the remains in a sack as he ran, grabbing Max by the arm and muttering under his breath. “Run, Max, before someone finds the bodies upstairs.” As they rounded the corner into the alley, they leaned against the wall. “Stupid kids, unleashing evil into the world to try to strike a deal with Satan,” Cody said as he ran a hand through his hair. “I hope they asked for some cool shit before they were killed, like maybe a cool car or something and nothing stupid like a gold fiddle. Who the FUCK wants a gold fiddle? At least try to barter for a cool instrument like a guitar or a piano.” “I used to play the fiddle when I was little before my mom died,” Max told him. Cody just rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Jesus Christ, Max, when do we reach the summit of your mountain of gayness? You’re my best friend in the world, but seriously, every time we seem to be reaching the top, the elevation ends up far higher. And what the hell did you by ‘ex-girlfriend’? Bridget and I just taking a break.” “She got a new phone number,” “People get new numbers all the time,” Cody told him. “She blocked your number,” “She probably did it by mistake,” Cody said. “She changed her online relationship status to ‘Fuck off, Cody,” “She’s just a little upset with me,” Cody said. “She’ll calm down when she’s ready.” “You got her father killed when a Leprechaun punched him through the back of the skull and used him like a puppet. Cody, she’s gone. She is never coming back you in million years.” “I can wait,” Cody said. “I’m a patient guy.” * “We got one!” John shouted as he held up a snake. “You pushed a little old lady down the stairs,” Andy said the two ran out of the Ferguson Nursing home. “She landed on a mattress,” John replied. “That I had to drag downstairs,” Andy told him. “How many more?” “I think it’s just two more,” John said. “Then we can get rid of these things for good.” “I think I saw it head that way!” Andy shouted as he turned a corner, running into a boy his age, just a bit taller with dark blonde hair. “Watch where you’re going, dork,” the boy said as Andy recognized him immediately. The Kill Bill siren music blared in Andy’s head as he remembered being tormented on his first day of school back in 2nd grade. “Come on, Andy!” John shouted as he ran past. “Wait a minute, you’re the kid who couldn’t handle 2nd grade,” Rick Spires said. “You’re the guy who killed Mrs. Kettlewell!” “I didn’t kill her,” Andy told him as he shoved Rick away. “I don’t have time for assholes right now.” Rick grabbed him by the shirt and got a sadistic sneer on his face. “She was my favorite teacher. I’m gonna clean your clock!” “Let me go!” Andy shouted. “What are you gonna do, cry to your mommy?” Rick asked. “Didn’t she ditch you in a foster home? Aw, your mommy didn’t love you?” Andy lost control of his anger at that point and head-butted Rick in the noise as hard as he could as a cracking nose was heard. Rick’s nose gushed blood as he fell to his knees. “You- you broke my nose!” Andy used two fingers to pulled Rick up by his nose until he got to his feet. “Why don’t you go home and cry to mommy?” Rick ran off crying as John returned, holding the snake around the neck. “Jesus, Andy. That was a bit… hardcore.” “No one talks about my mom,” Andy said bitterly. “No one.” “Do you maybe want to… talk?” John asked. “I need a drink,” Andy said as he walked away as he pulled out a flask he had for emergencies. “Fuck Tommy’s rules.” * “Snakes? Why did it have to be snakes?” Tommy asked as he struggled with a snake that was trying to jump into his body. “A little help here?” “I’m on it!” Jacob shouted as he picked up a large stick while attempting to hit the snake, but kept hitting Tommy. “Sorry!” “Just bash this stupid fucking thing before it gets in my body and makes me kill someone!” Tommy told him. “How hard is it to kill another of these things?” “What do you mean? I killed the last one,” Jacob told him. “Then kill this one already!” “Fine, fine,” Jacob said as he got ready to hit the snake when he heard a voice. “Dream Master!” Tangina said as Jacob stopped, dropping the stick as he stumbled back. “You’re needed! Find the Freelings in Connecticut before it’s too late!” “JACOB!” Tommy shouted as Cody ran up and grabbed the snake. “Do it, Max!” Cody shouted Max drove a knife into the snake, stopping just inches from Cody’s eyeball. “Cut it close there, didn’t you?” “Relax, you’d look good with an eyepatch,” Max told him as Cody dropped the dead snake into the bag as John and Andy walked up. “I believe that makes Seven Deadly Sins,” John said. “Let’s burn these fuckers in holy water and be done with it before these things regenerate.” “You okay, Jacob?” Andy asked as he drunk from his flask as Tommy looked at him. “Baby steps, alright? Can’t expect me to go cold turkey immediately. Sometimes I need a little pick-me-up during a mission, like when I run into assholes I knew as a kid.” “Kid? You’re— you’re 12,” Cody reminded him. “I’ll be 13 in November,” “I think we got our next mission,” Jacob told the group. * “Tangina’s the one that led me to Dalton,” Jacob told them as they sat in the van while Tommy and John dealt with the remains of the snakes at the local church. “My… well, he’s my…” “Your boyfriend, we read the letters,” Cody told him. “It’s cool, dude, we don’t care if you’re gay.” “I’m not gay, I’m bisexual.” “Sure you are, honey,” Cody told him as he lightly slapped him on the cheek. “ANYWAY,” Jacob told him. “Tangina’s a medium, and now she wants me to find the Freeling family in Connecticut. I don’t know why.” Max sat against the wall on the laptop as he typed. “Here’s why. About 8 years ago, the Freeling family got haunted by poltergeists when they moved into a house that was built over a cemetery. They moved the headstones, but not the bodies. The ghosts got understandably pissed. They were led by a Reverend Kane, who’d convinced his followers not to go into the light when they died. Because Carol Anne Freeling had been born in the house they were haunting, they were drawn to her, believed she could lead them to the light so they’d finally be at peace. And no matter how many times the Freelings moved, Kane and his people would follow them for two years until Kane was trapped in the void between life and death.” “And now they’re back,” Cody said. “So, what are we supposed to do? We’re not the Ghostbusters.” “Tangina wants us there, so we have to go,” Jacob told them. “Maybe my dream powers can help, or Max’s cap, I don’t know. I just know Tangina brought me to Dalton so I owe her at least that match.” “Didn’t Dalton up and vanish when he moved?” Andy asked. “Maybe he’s just getting used to his new home,” Jacob told him. “I’ll find him soon enough, it’s only been a few weeks. For now we need to hit the road to Connecticut.” The van door opened as Tommy and John returned. “Well, that was an adventure,” John said. “Little fuckers started regenerating as we were frying them. That’s not a sound you want to hear if you want pleasant dreams. So what’s the mission?” * Connecticut Two days later, the blue van belonging to the Nightmare Warriors pulled up to the Freeling house. There was police tape in the yard where Aurie Davis had vanished without a trace, the only evidence to the crime being a white sneaker coated in ice. The Freelings had been cleared on any wrongdoing, but now the whole city was searching for Aurie Davis. “Think it was just a kidnapping?” John asked as he read the article. “His parents said he had no reason to run away,” Tommy said. “He was a good student, played hockey, and pretty much every girl at his girl was swooning over him. If it was maybe something supernatural, that’s the reason we’re here, right?” They walked up to the door and knocked as Steve Freeling opened the door. He was an older man that looked like he could be a coach for a college team. “Can I help you?” “Yeah, I can’t quite explain, but we were sent here for a ghost problem?” Tommy said. “We’re done with paranormal researchers, psychics, and wise men,” Steve told him as he started to close the door. “Good day.” “Wait,” Jacob said. “Tangina sent us.” “Tangina?” Diane Freeling said as she rushed to the door. “She sent you? She said she had some last-minute business to take care of but she was coming here right after. Who are you?” “We have experience in fighting monsters,” John told her. “May we come in?” “If they can help Carol Anne, we have to trust them,” Diane said as she looked at Steve. The Freelings led them to the living room where a young man and woman in their early 20’s sat on the couch. “This is our daughter Dana and her fiancee Scott,” Diane told them. They’d met in college and had recently become engaged, only to discover they were pregnant soon after. “And this is our little bundle of joy,” Dana said as she put a hand on her stomach. “We’re finding out the sex next week.” “Congratulations,” Tommy said. “What can you tell us about the kid that vanished from the yard?” “We told the police everything we know, even let them search the house,” Steve told them. “We never knew Aurie before he moved in last month. He’s a good kid, a hard worker. Outside of Carol Anne bringing him lemonade, I was the only one to ever talk to him when I paid him for the yard work.” “And where’s Carol Anne now?” John asked. “I’m right here,” a girl’s voice said from the stairs. As they looked over, Andy’s heart started skipping a beat as he could have sworn that he heard White Snake’s ‘Is This Love?’ playing. Time seemed to slow down as Andy watched the blonde, long-haired Carol Ann descend the stairs. “What’s happening right now?” Cody asked as he noticed Andy’s smitten look. “No,” John said as he snapped his fingers in front of Andy’s face. “It can’t be, can it?” “I think our little Andy’s got his first crush,” Max realized. “Does our little boy have a little crush —“ Andy’s fist plowed into Max’s stomach as he fell over just as Carol Anne walked in. “Hi,” Andy said in a daze as he kept his eyes on Carol Anne. “Ew, you smell like that nasty stuff Daddy drinks from that bottle in the cabinet,” Carol Anne told him. “Are they here to stop the ghosts from taking me?” “We’re going to try,” John promised as he looked around. “I thought there were three kids in this family.” “Robbie’s out in the yard,” Diane told him. “He’s been depressed lately. He feels like we’ve been ignoring him for a while between the move, helping Dana prepare for his pregnancy and make sure Carol Anne’s settled. We were going to have a big party for him until this business started up again. Truthfully we do love Robbie, but sometimes he gets lost in the shuffle.” “Come on, Max, let’s go talk to him,” Cody suggested as they passed by a trophy case. “Baseball, football, bowling? Holy shit, nothing says ‘Trying to win Daddy’s love’ like bringing home a bowling trophy.” “Seriously,” Max told him. “My foster parents were impressed after the first swimming medal I brought home. They were proud of me from the start. Kind of less impressed when they found out the medal wasn’t real gold, though.” “I wish my parents had lived long enough for me to earn some trophies,” Cody said sadly. “I mean, yeah, I know they loved me and all, but I just felt like they were gone before they could actually say it.” “It probably doesn’t count, but I’m proud of you,” Max said. “You know what? It kind of does,” Cody smiled as they headed for the door. As they passed by the mirror, Reverend Kane smirked at them. “Thanks, buddy.” “So, are those two… together?” Dana asked when they were gone. “What? No, they just bonded through monsters trying to devour their immortal souls,” Tommy told them without flinching. “Has there been any ghostly activity in the house?” “Beyond the living room rearranging itself randomly?” Steve asked. “Maybe we need to check the whole house,” John suggested. “Dana, why don’t you and Scott show them the upstairs bedrooms?” Diane said. As Dana stood up, Reverend Kane stood behind the couch in the mirror near the door. “I’ll show some of you the kitchen.” As Diane led Jacob and John to the kitchen, Kane watched them disappear into the next room, cackling to himself. * In the front yard, a reddish-blonde teenage boy sat on a tree swing, just staring down at the ground. “Careful, dude, the tree might try to eat you,” Cody joked. “No reaction, huh? Let me guess, you’re depressed because the younger sister’s plagued by ghosts and the older sister has the parent’s love for giving them a grandkid. No love for the middle son no matter how hard he tries, is that right?” “There’s nothing special about me,” Robbie told them with a sigh. “No matter what I do, I can’t hold their attention. I sign up for every sport, I get straight A’s, but the second Carol Anne is scared at night my parents are right there to comfort her. No one’s been there to comfort me since my braces tried to eat me.” “I’m glad I never had to have braces,” Cody told him. “I knew those things were a nightmare, but—“ “I’m sure your family loves you,” Max said. “If demons weren’t trying to eat your sister’s soul they’d be out proving it to you right now. You just gotta give them time.” “I’m thinking about seeing if I can go stay with my aunt in Chicago for a while. I’d probably get more attention there,” Robbie said. “How does your family feel about this?” Cody asked. “Haven’t told them,” Robbie said. “There’s no point, they’d just ignore me anyway like they always do.” “I’m sure that’s not true,” Cody told him. “Today’s my 16th birthday. I get that they’re worried about losing Carol Anne, I am too, I’d do anything to keep her safe, but a ‘Happy Birthday’ would have at least been nice.” Max and Cody put their hands on his back to comfort him. * in the kitchen, John checked under the table while Andy looked under the sink to see what they could find. “Nothing’s happened beyond the furniture on the ceiling thing?” John asked. “When did that start?” “The day before yesterday,” Diane told them. “It’s been years since we’ve had to deal with something like this. I mean, there have been little things here and there that have forced us to move, but nothing on this level like a little boy vanishing.” “You think it’s this Kane guy?” Andy asked. “I don’t know,” Diane said. “But the last time we were told that Kane had to be invited in. The only person we’ve invited in was Aurie, but—“ “But what?” John asked. “Aurie came in and nearly passed out as he got into the living room,” Diane said. “We thought he was dehydrated, he’d been working hard all afternoon so I got him some water, but by the time I got back with it, he was fine.” “Kane hitched a ride in his body,” John realized. “So he’s in the house. But why hasn’t he tried to grab Carol Anne? Why just some random kid that has nothing to do with this?” “Tangina said he’s weak right now, so it might take time to gather his strength,” Diane told him. “Could he have seen Aurie as a threat?” “No, there’s something else here,” John told her. “Why wait eight years to come back? Where’s he been this whole time?” As Andy looked in the refrigerator, he noticed a tray of meat but closed the door he could see the maggots crawling in it. * After searching the bedrooms, Tommy returned to Jacob. “You’re the psychic of the group. Don’t you feel anything on the missing kid?” “I wouldn’t even begin to know what to look for,” Jacob said. “I’ve never even met the guy. Hell, it was Tangina that sent us here after the fact. I mean, maybe it’d be different if I had something to work with.” “How about his jacket?” Carol Anne said. “He brought it just in case it rained before he went home the day he disappeared.” “I guess it’s worth a shot,” Jacob told her as Andy and John came upstairs. As Carol Anne passed by, Andy just smiled at her. “Don’t worry, Carol Anne,” Andy told her. “No ghosts will get you while I’m here.” “I’m not afraid of the ghosts,” Carol Anne told him. “I’ve been through this before, and even if this was the first time, you’re the last person I’d turn to for protection. I’d turn to my Daddy and big brother or Scott before you. I don’t like people who drink.” As Carol Anne carried the jacket into the bedroom, Andy looked sad as John put a hand on his shoulder. “You really like this girl, don’t you?” “I’ve never liked anyone like this,” Andy told him. “But she doesn’t like me. What do I do? I like her, John. I’ve never felt like this about anyone before.” John pulled out a bottle of breath mints and put them in Andy’s hand. “Give me the flask.” “But—“ “Give. Me. The. Flask,” John told him as Andy reluctantly handed it over. “Start drinking water and coffee and for God’s sake, stop acting like a dipstick. Once you sober up, try again, I have a feeling we’ll be in the neighborhood for a few days until we crack this. Just don’t lose hope, if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. Just don’t force it, she’ll come around if you clean yourself up.” In the bedroom, Carol Anne handed Jacob the jacket. “He was wearing this when he came in the other day,” Carol Anne said. “Well, I don’t know if my powers are strong enough to—“ as Jacob took the jacket, a bright flash of light hit him as he started being assaulted by several images of a cold, dark place. Fog covered the ground as a solitary bright light from far off shined through the darkness. Jacob let go of the jacket as he started to fall before Tommy caught him. “So cold…,” Jacob said as he shivered. “I felt what Aurie was feeling, Tommy. He’s somewhere dark. He can’t move and he’s scared. He wants his mother and, he likes Carol Anne.” “That’s why Kane took him,” Tangina said as she stood at the door. “He’s going to try to remove anyone who feels love for Carol Ann as he gains strength so she has no one left on this side to help her. As he grows stronger, he’ll come for the rest of her family as well. I can feel him, he’s in the house.” “What was that place I saw?” Jacob asked. “The Other Side,” Tangina replied. “That’s where he’s going to try to force Carol Ann to lead him into the light.” “Then why don’t we get her out of here?” Tommy asked. “Get her far away.” “Kane will follow, just like he always does,” Tangina told him. “After all of these years he must have found her. Even the tiniest thought of him could have acted as a beacon for his evil.” “That horror movie Robbie watched last week when we told him not to. I knew letting having him that mini-DVD player was a mistake,” Diane said. “Did you watch it, Carol Anne?” “Only part of it,” Carol Anne said. “Amityville Horror, it reminded me of what happened, but I wasn’t scared.” “It was enough, child,” Tangina told her. “All it takes is one toe in the door for him to come back.” “So it’s my fault now?” Robbie asked as he stood at the door. “So it’s not enough everyone ignores me, but now I’m responsible for those things coming back?” “Robbie, we never said—“ Steve said as Robbie backed away. “You didn’t have to say it, I can tell by the way everyone looked at me when I walked in. No wonder you forgot my birthday, I’m just the worthless middle child that just got my sister kidnapped by ghosts.” “Robbie, this isn’t about you right now,” Diane told him. “And it’s not your fault, we all knew this would happen again someday.” “Yeah, it’s never about me, not even on my birthday apparently,” Robbie said as he ran out the door. Steve and Diane just looked at each other. “We were going to put the decorations up just before this started happening,” Diane realized. “I was getting ready to make the cake and— We should talk to him.” “I’ll do it,” Andy volunteered as he heard the door slam. “Me and someone with a license will do it.” “We need to prepare for Kane,” Tangina told everyone else as Andy and Max left the room. “He’ll be strong enough to strike very soon, we need to protect Carol Ann and… the baby,” Tangina said as she looked at Dana. “I sense your baby is also in danger in this house.” “That’s it, we’re going to a motel,” Scott said as he started his forearm in frustration, a nervous tic he’d had since childhood when his younger sister had put spiders into his bed one night. “Honey, I want to protect your family, but I’m not putting you or this baby in danger.” “Kane will find you where ever you go now,” Tangina told them. “Everyone must stay here to be safe until we finish this.” “I saw it,” Jacob said in a blank stare as he talked to no one in particular. “I saw Kane in my vision. Old, frail-looking bastard? Pasty skin that didn’t look too healthy? He was with someone. A kid about Andy’s age, dressed in black. There was something evil about him. If Dana leaves the house, Kane will come after her. It’s like Kane wasn’t just after Carol Ann. He wants Dana and the baby and… someone else, but I snapped out of it before I could see who.” “Well, he wants Carol Ann and Dana, maybe he wants Robbie too, take her siblings off the board before they can fight back,” Cody suggested. “Maybe it’s best no one else leaves until we stop this.” “Your powers can lead us to the Other Side,” Tangina told Jacob as she took off her necklace and put it in his hands. “This necklace was given to me by a powerful medicine man the last time we fought Kane’s evil. We have to confront Kane there before he gets too powerful. This necklace will lead you to him so you can fight him.” “I guess we’re having a sleepover,” Tommy told the group. “We need to focus on protecting Carol Anne and Dana from this point forward. Andy and Max will protect Robbie until they come back. In the meantime, let’s gear up with any weapon we can find.” “Don’t worry, I have my crossbow,” Cody told him. “That makes me feel better, we might run across a pig so we can have a luau,” Steve sarcastically said. “Max took the van,” John realized as he felt around for the van keys. “Does he even know how to drive?” “Do any of us have a valid license?” Jacob asked. “Yeah, didn’t think so.” “He has a learner’s permit,” Cody told them. “He’ll be okay.” * Andy sat in the passenger side seat as he kept a lookout while the van drove down the street. “You’re just doing this to get Carol Anne to warm up to you, aren’t you?” Max asked as he kept his eyes on the road. “What? No,” Andy laughed. “I really want to help Randy,” “Robbie,” “Whatever,” Andy said he looked out the window. “There he is! Pull over!” Robbie sat at a bus stop as the van pulled up. Andy and Max ran up to him as Robbie looked up. “Where are you going?” Max asked. “Chicago,” Robbie said. “My aunt will let me stay there for a while. There’s one there to endanger.” “What happened wasn’t your fault,” Andy told him. “You couldn’t have known that watching a horror movie would lead to this. You’re a kid, you like horror flicks, most kids do.” “Do you?” Robbie asked. “As long as it’s not about demon-possessed dolls,” “I still need to leave,” Robbie said as he stood him. “I’m not doing anyone any good here. I’ll just be in the way, I always am.” “Then go somewhere you can be useful,” Max told him. “Join our team. You’ve had experience with these things, maybe you can be of use to us.” “He’s right, if you join us, you’ll be somewhere where you’ll be appreciated,” Andy said. “You’ll be with friends, and if a monster attacks you, then at least you’ll be in good company.” “I don’t know,” Robbie said. “I’d have to think about it.” “And while you’re thinking, come back to help save your sister,” Max said. “We can’t do this without you.” “That’s a load of bullshit, but… okay,” Robbie told him. “I guess we can talk about this some more after we kick Kane’s ass.” * The sun had set and darkness had overtaken the neighborhood as Scott, Dana and Carol Anne were in the basement with Scott holding a shotgun. “I don’t like this,” Scott said. “This basement feels like a tight space.” “There’s no place for ghosts to attack down here as far as I can tell,” Tommy told him. “We’ll be right upstairs, ready to fight Kane when he starts his shit. You should be safe here.” “I’d still feel better if Dana was far away from here,” Scott told him. “You’ll be okay,” Tommy promised. “Nothing’s getting through us. We’re armed to the teeth up there and we have a Dream Master and a guy with a magic hat. We’ve got this.” “Well, I certainly feel better,” Scott said as he rolled his eyes. * Upstairs, Jacob sat on the couch as Cody set up traps to alert them if someone entered the house. “So, what, are we going to ‘Home Alone’ the ghosts to death?” Jacob asked. “You might be able to enter the Other Side through your dreams,” Tangina told him. “You may be able to find this boy and talk to Kane before he strikes.” “And kick his ass if he gets hostile,” Tommy told him. “Are you up for it?” “It’s better than facing Freddy,” Jacob told him as he lay back on the couch. “Okay, I’ll give it a shot. At least asleep I have access to my Dream Master powers. A little super strength and a nice sonic scream oughta send him packing.” “In the meantime, I’m starving,” Cody said as he grabbed his crossbow. “I’m going to see if there’s something decent in the kitchen.” “I’ll go check on the parents upstairs,” John said as he grabbed his shotgun. “I just hope Andy and Max are on their way back.” * Downstairs, Carol Anne and Dana had fallen asleep on separate cots as Scott kept watch, trying not to doze off as he bolted awake. Scott went into the small adjoining bathroom to splash cold water on his face to stay awake as he noticed a spider crawling up the drain. He started to nervously scratch his arm as his childhood trauma came back to haunt him. “They should hire an exterminator,” Scott said nervously as he scratched his arm as he felt a tickle, which was getting worse. He looked down and saw a lump moving through his arm. “What the—“ He went to open the door, finding it locked as the first lump started getting larger. More lumps started moving through his arms as he started feeling pain. “What’s going on?” Scott asked as he kept scratching as he started drawing blood as he streaked down his arm. Several small scary legs started poking through the wound. “Oh God.” A small spider started crawling through the wound, followed by more that were starting to burst through his skin, including a larger tarantula that was trying to burst through. As he fell back against the wall, Scott tore his shirt open as more spiders were starting to burst through small holes on his chest, screaming as they started popping out. His pant lets were starting to bulge, and two large spiders started to tear through his sneakers. He started screaming but was muffled as he started coughing up spiders as chunks of bloodied flesh started hitting the floor. The spiders were now coming out of his eyes, ears, and nose, tiny hairy legs trying to come through every orifice and large lumps were appearing on his forehead. Scott fell forward to the floor, hitting his head on the sink as his head burst open as a horde of spiders fell out and started filling the bathroom. “Scott?” Dana asked as she opened the door, finding the bathroom empty. Only Scott’s ripped clothing lay on the floor with the first spider crawling back down the drain. The echo of Kane’s laughter was heard coming from the drain. * Upstairs, Diane was brushing her hair in the bathroom mirror as she saw Steve in the reflection. “Think everyone’s going to be okay downstairs?” Steve asked as Diane just stared into the mirror. “We’ve gotten through this before, I know we’ll finally beat these things for good,” Diane said as she turned around, finding the bathroom door had been closed the whole time just a knock came and Steve opened the door. “Think everyone’s going to be okay downstairs?” Steve asked as Diane quickly turned around to see Kane in the mirror, laughing before he grabbed her by the head and pulling her into the mirror. Steve tried to pull Diane back as the cord from the hairdryer wrapped around his neck. Diane was pulled all the way through Steve fell back. “NO!” “Come and get her, if you dare!” Kane laughed as the mirror broke. Steve quickly got to his feet and ran into the bedroom, falling into the carpet that was now quicksand. Steve went under, trying to breathe and stay above the sand as he soon sank all the way under as the carpet returned to normal, just as John walked in. “Mr. and Mrs. Freeling?” John asked he carefully stepped in, seeing a clown doll sitting on the bed. John put the gun down and picked the creepy doll up. It had a hideous grin and long fingers. “Who sleeps with a clown doll?” The doll’s grin turned sinister as its arms wrapped around John’s neck and started giggling hideously. * “It’s begun,” Tangina warned Tommy. “Keep the boys safe, Jacob and the other two are the best weapons we have when they return.” “Max and Andy? How are they going to—“ Tommy asked as Tangina was pulled through the living room mirror. “Oh, shit!” Tommy went to help her as the mirror started to crack with a bright light shining through before exploding. Tommy flew back against the wall, being rendered unconscious as he hit the floor. Kane’s laugh was heard a large shelf started shaking, antiques falling to the ground as the shelf fell right on top of Tommy, porcelain shattering everywhere. * In the kitchen, Cody heard noises from living only to shrug them off. “Probably nothing,” Cody said as he opened the fridge to find a tray full of rotting meat, covered in maggots. “GROSS!” Cody slammed the door shut, leaning against the door as it started shaking violently. Picking up his crossbow from the counter, the door floor of its hinges as a ten-oot maggot crawled out. “What have they been feeding that thing?” Cody asked as he aimed his crossbow only for the maggot to scream before jumping at him with its razor-sharp teeth. * The Other Side Scott, along with Tangina and the Freelings, sat frozen in ice as Kane just stared at them. “I’m almost strong enough,” Kane said as someone appeared behind him. A young man dressed in black with long fingernails stared at the captives. “These aren’t the ones I asked for,” the Kid said in an adult voice that was far older than he appeared to look. With calmness in his voice he asked about his true targets. “Where’s the baby? Where’s the boy? It’s because of my power that you were able to return from the Void where you were trapped for years and you’ve brought me nothing. This is very disappointing.” “Soon,” Kane said the Kid stared around. “Wait a minute, someone here is watching us,” the Kid said as he smirked before he figured out who it was. “Well, hello, Jacob.” With a flick of his wrist, Jacob was pulled toward the ground and immediately wrapped in chains. Jacob had been searching for Aurie while trying to hear the Kid’s plan with Kane before he’d been realized. “It’s nice to have the Dream Master join us, but he’s not the one I wanted,” “You just fucked with the wrong Dream Master!” Jacob said as he broke through the chains, preparing for a sonic scream. “Now you’re going to—“ The Kid punched Jacob, causing his nose to bleed as he slashed at Jacob’s shirt, drawing blood. Before Jacob could fight back, the Kid flicked his wrist and trapped Jacob in ice. “I’d kill you, but your power might be useful to me when this is all over. Or it will when I rip those powers out of you and add them to my own,” the Kid said as he turned to face Kane. “My powers are being channeled through you so I can only operate on this plane for now. I want that baby so I can be reborn into the world, and I want that boy as my main course after my grand return.” “I’ll have them soon,” Kane told him. “I only have to capture the others, then Carol Anne is mine.” “Good,” the Kid said. * In another plane, the angel Will, in his toy soldier uniform, pounded on a locked door as he tried to escape while being tortured by a horde of demonic toys. Will, his soldier outfit ripped and torn and the boy battered and bruised, could only think of Max as he continued to be beaten down. * “Because I want my half-brother’s soulmate to be the first to die after I’m reborn. Then,” the Kid said as he made a grand gesture while smiling. ”The blood’s really going to flow.” TO BE CONTINUED… Eight Years Earlier
“Thank you for meeting me on such short notice,” Creighton Duke said as he sat in the small cafe. “It took quite a bit of effort to track you down.” “You said this has something to do with Tommy. Is he okay?” “Your brother is a very sick man,” Duke told the person sitting across from him. “I understand he spent a considerable amount of time in a mental institution.” “When he was 12, a murderer killed a bunch of kids next door, and our mother,” Trish Petrie (Formerly Jarvis) said as she sipped her coffee. Trish had gone on to marry and have a career, owning the very cafe they sat in. She now had her own daughter that Tommy Jarvis had never met. “Tommy… killed the guy. He was never the same. But they assured me that he was better when they let him out.” “He proceeded to murder more innocent people the very same week he got out,” Duke told her. “Including someone very special to me. Have you had any contact with your brother recently?” “No,” Trish told him. “I haven’t spoken to Tommy in a very long time. He just wasn’t the same kid I knew anymore. He hasn’t even talked to our father. I invited him to my wedding, but—“ “Mrs. Petrie, it’s imperative that I find your brother before he murders again,” Duke told her. “Do you have any idea where he could be now?” “No,” Trish told him. “Is he going to be okay?” “Let’s just say that when he’s found, he’s never going to hurt anyone ever again,” Duke said with a smile. “Good day, Mrs. Petrie.” As Duke stood up to leave, Trish looked out of the window. “Tommy, what have you gotten yourself into?” * Jacob Johnson found himself standing in front of his grandparent’s home in Springwood, Ohio. Creighton Duke held a gun in his back to make sure he didn’t run away as the door opened and Jacob’s grandparents came running down the steps toward him. “Jacob, my sweet grandbaby!” his grandmother shouted as she hugged him tightly. “You are… in so much trouble!” Freddy’s voice shouted as she backhanded him a metal glove. Jacob fell into the grass as his grandfather picked him up and carried toward a woodchopper, now in form of Freddy Krueger. “We missed you very mulch!” Freddy shouted as he tossed Jacob in. As he hit the blades, Jacob screamed as he was dragged down, blood and bones spitting out the back. Jacob woke up screaming while laying in a hallway of a high-rise apartment in Chicago, where he spotted the apartment of Karen & Andy Barclay. Jacob and Andy had been tranquilized trying to sneak into an old factory where bounty hunter Creighton Duke had lured the Nightmare Warriors into a trap. “Don’t have much time,” Jacob said as he found the door to the apartment was locked. He started pounding on the door as he tried to get in. “Go away!” Andy shouted as he looked around, finding his mother wasn’t home. “Andy, we don’t have time for this! If this guy takes out the others, we’re fucked! You go back to foster care and I have to go back to Springwood! And I…,” Jacob’s voice started shaking. “And I don’t wanna die, Andy. Freddy Krueger’s going to kill me the second he gets me. I’m scared, Andy. I’m scared and I know I have no chance of surviving this. So please… help me.” After a minute, the door opened, letting Jacob in. He slowly walked in, noticing how quiet things were. He finally found Andy sitting on his mother’s bed, crying. “She’s never coming back,” Andy whispered. “No one ever comes back for me. My parents, Kyle, Danny… no one. I’m always going to be alone.” “No, you’re not,” Jacob promised. “Even if Duke takes me, Tommy and the others will come for you. You have a family here.” “I wish I could believe that,” Andy told him. “But if the Cult doesn’t get me, Chucky will.” “Then we’ll kill Chucky,” Jacob told him. “We’ll figure out where he is and finish him, then we’ll bury whatever’s left so he can never ever come back.” “You’d do that for me?” Andy asked. “You said it yourself, we’re brothers,” Jacob said as he gently hugged him. “No one’s taking any of us anywhere. Now get your ass up because we’re getting back into the fight to save the others.” “We’re both asleep and drugged to Charlie Sheen levels,” Andy told him. “What do we do?” “I need to find John,” Jacob told him. “I’m going to try to wake you up, you get the others and make sure they’re alright.” “I’m pumped full of tranquilizer,” Andy told him. “How are going to—“ Jacob grabbed Andy’s arm and dragged him to the kitchen where he slammed Andy’s palm down onto a hot stove that he dreamt up out of nowhere. Andy screamed in pain as he bolted awake on the floor. “You mother fucker!” Andy shouted as he looked for a bandage for his hand. * “Alright, let’s take stock of our situation,” Cody Ingalls said as he hung upside down next to Max Madison. “We’re hanging upside down, you lost your magic cap, I can’t keep my shirt from falling down over my face, and any minute now, the police are going to break down that door and take us to prison where the population will have their way with our pretty young bodies.” “You really think I’m pretty?” Max asked. “Focus!” Cody ordered. “Okay, we can’t magic our way out of this, no big deal. Luckily I have a back-up plan.” Cody pulled his way up to his pant leg, pulling out a knife. “Always be prepared, that’s the boy scout motto.” “You were a boy scout?” Max asked. “No, but I got my ass kicked by one when I was 12,” Cody told him. “Stole his knife when he wasn’t looking.” Cody cut the rope around his ankle as he fell to the floor, landing on his back. “You okay?” Max asked. “Anyone got any Neosporin?” Cody asked. * Tommy made his way through the loading shock, shining his flashlight as he looked around. “This place could use some housekeeping,” Tommy said as he looked at all the dust. “Can’t wait to find John and get out of here.” Duke remained hidden as he held a sawed-off shotgun, waiting for just the right moment to strike. “Come on out, you son of a bitch,” Duke said. Tommy got closer to the door when a cat jumped down from out of nowhere. Tommy quickly turned with his gun ready to fire but stopped when he realized it was only a cat. “Sorry, guy,” Tommy told him. “You startled me. You haven’t seen my buddy, have you? Tall, dark hair, baby face?” The cat scampered away as Tommy breathed a sigh of relief, not realizing Duke was behind him. * Andy rushed past a janitor’s closet where he found the unconscious John chained to a pipe. “Alright, Johnny, time to wake up,” Andy said, his right hand wrapped in Jacob’s shirt. He figured Jacob burned his hand, he could provide the bandage. Andy started shaking him before he saw the empty tranquilizer darts. “Of course, he’s a full grown-adult, I guess. He’s going to be out for a long time, and he’s too heavy to carry. Looks like I’m dragging your ass to the van. Now I just have to find something to pick the lock. I hope Jacob’s able to wake you up from the other side.” * Max picked up his cap as Cody leaned against the wall, trying to pop his back into place. “Do you need help?” Max asked. “You hit the floor pretty hard.” “Just gotta pop it back, I should be okay,” Cody said. “Ow!” “Oh, for God’s sake,” Max said as he grabbed Cody from behind and, with one swift move, a crunch was heard as Cody screamed before falling forward. “I was a swimmer, I learned how to deal with cramps and sore muscles and popped bones. Hitting the water from a tall diving board isn’t easy.” “How’d it happen?” Cody asked as he tried to pick himself up from the floor. “Your accident?” “I don’t remember that much,” Max told him. “It was the day of the big swim meet. I was going to bring home the trophy for the school, impress my foster parents, and hopefully get to go to the Olympics if the rep in the audience liked my performance. I don’t recall what happened, I just know that as I was getting ready to head to the pool I started feeling dizzy. I tried to shake it off and tried to power through, but I ended up slipping and hit my head on the board on the way down. I nearly drowned. After that, I just gave up swimming altogether. Been afraid to go back into the water ever since.” Cody put a hand on his back. “I’m sorry for pushing you to get into the pool this morning, Max. I had no idea how bad it was.” “We need to find the others before Creighton does,” Max told him. “Who knows if Tommy, John, and Andy are still alive.” Cody picked up his crossbow. “Let’s go save our buddies.” * “John?” Jacob asked as he walked around the woods, finally finding his friend sitting on the porch of his cabin, drinking a beer. “This place must have been peaceful,” Jacob told him. “You’re not with Molly? Or your mother?” “Molly’s dead,” John whispered. “And my mom didn’t want to stick around.” “They went to find the Cult to keep them off our backs,” Jacob said as he sat down. “I’m sorry about Molly. We’ve all lost people we care about.” “Doesn’t take the sting away,” John told him. “I loved Molly. She was the first girl that made me feel… special. I mean, I’m not talking like ‘experimenting with your best friend to see what it feels like’ kind of thing. Molly made my life feel better.” Jacob put a hand on John’s shoulder. “I know what you mean. His name’s Dalton and… I really care about him.” John smiled a little. “How bad is it out there?” “Max, Cody, and Tommy are out there and Andy’s trying to find them,” Jacob said. “I don’t think we have much time.” “He drugged me,” John said. “I can’t wake myself up.” “Did you try the stove?” John held up his burned palm. “I’ll try something,” Jacob said as he stood up. “When you wake up, find the others.” “What about you?” “I have a plan,” Jacob told him. “But I’m going to need you to do something really important when you get up..” Jacob put his hands on John’s head and concentrated. Moments later, John disappeared in a bright light and floated away as Jacob fell back into the chair, part of his energy drained. * “Jesus, John, how much do you weigh?” Andy asked as he dragged the unconscious John down the hall. “And Tommy doesn’t me to drink anymore?” Cody and Max ran into the hall to see Andy dragging John toward the stairwell. “About damn time,” Andy told them. “Help me drag this fat fuck outside.” “Where’s Jacob?” Cody asked. “Upstairs in the room we came in. We got jumped the second we got in,” “I’ll get him,” Cody said as he headed upstairs. “Max, help get John downstairs. We gotta find Tommy.” “I’ll get his legs,” Max said. “Careful, or you’ll hit his head every step down.” “Maybe the bouncing will shake some of this weight off,” Andy told him as John gasped while opening his eyes. “If you guys are gonna rape me, at least let me be conscious so I can fight back.” “Alright, this guy took out five of us, but there’s no way he can take us all at once,” Cody said as he saw Max back with Jacob over his shoulder and without his shirt. “Max, where’s your shirt?” “Everyone else was taking their’s off, I just wanted to be popular.” * “It’s so much easier going through people’s memories when they’re awake,” Jacob said as he found Camp Crystal Lake in Creighton Duke’s memories. “I just have to find something to slow him down and… bingo!” * Tommy hit the wall as blood dripped down his shirt. He’s managed to hold his own against Duke so far, but he was quickly tiring from the fight. Plus Duke was more muscular and better trained at fighting. Tommy knew he wouldn’t last much longer. “Is this all really about Jacob?” Tommy asked. “I’m not a kidnapper. If you’d let me explain—“ Duke grabbed Tommy and threw him into a stack of crates before cracking his knuckles. “This isn’t about either of those boys,” Duke told him. “I will take them home, but this is about something bigger. You murdered someone very close to me.” “What? I’ve never killed a man in my life!” Tommy told him. “I only monsters.” “What a coincidence, I’m about to kill one now,” Duke told him. “And I’m gonna do it real slow so I can make you scream like you made all those kids scream.” “What are you talking about?” Tommy asked. The rest of the ream rushed through the door, Cody and Andy having removed their shirts as well. “Tommy!” Cody shouted. “Don’t worry, he can’t take all of us at once!” Duke just smiled as he tilted his head to crack his neck. Thirty seconds later, the entire group lay on the floor as Duke stepped over Max. “Wow, do we suck at hand-to-hand fighting,” Cody said as he tried to get up. Jacob bolted up from he lay, screaming as he held his burnt hand. “Tommy’s innocent!” Jacob shouted. “Jason Voorhees killed your cousin! He’s the one who killed everyone at Crystal Lake!” “He killed my brother and friends there recently!” Max added. “He killed my boyfriend.” “Bull,” Duke said with a hand around Tommy’s throat. “I don’t believe in fairy tales!” “Neither did I until a killer doll murdered my babysitter!” Andy shouted as he jumped onto Duke’s back. “A Leprechaun killed my guardian!” Cody shouted as he head-rammed Duke back. “A dream slasher killed my parents!” Jacob shouted as he punched Duke. “A masked psychopath killed my girlfriend!” John added as he shoulder rammed Duke into the wall. “Monsters do exist,” Tommy told him as he wiped the blood from his nose. “We’re here to stop them from killing more people.” “You’re all insane,” Duke told them. “You’ll all spend the rest of your lives in a mental ward.” “Maybe,” Tommy said he nodded to Max. “But if you ever touch any of my brothers again, you’re going to be sorry. In the meantime, do your fucking research about Jason Voorhees.” Tommy rammed Duke, causing him to fall through the portal that had opened up behind him. Duke fell into a snowbank in Alaska as the portal closed before he could reach over. “This isn’t over,” Duke said. “This is far from over.” * Tommy looked around at his team. “You guys really held it together and fought as a team,” Tommy told them. “I think we really can make this work with more training.” “A burly black man beat us in less than thirty seconds,” Cody said as he felt his sore shoulder. “We’re lucky none of us died.” “Which is why we need to start getting into better shape,” Tommy told them. “If guys like Duke are starting to come after us, we need to step our game.” “We’ll start by ramping up security at home,” John told him. “He knows where we live now. We need to prepared for him when he comes back.” “A few more teammates wouldn’t hurt, either,” Cody said. “Some heavy hitters than can take a punch.” “Then let’s go home and get to work,” Tommy told him. As they walked toward the door, John put a hand on Andy’s shoulder. “What’s this?” Andy asked. “Jacob said I needed to do something really important,” John said. “You’ll never be alone, Andy. I swear to you. You had an older foster sister a few years ago. Maybe you need a foster brother to keep an eye on you. One that’s never going to leave.” “I don’t know,” Andy told him nervously. “You gotta trust someone sometime,” John told him. “Just name something you want.” “Well, there’s that baseball game in town tonight.” “Put on a shirt when we get home and you’re on,” John promised as they exited the warehouse. * Fairfield, Connecticut Diane Freeling stood in the kitchen as her daughter Carol Ann sat at the table, making a card. “Do you think Robby’s going to like my card?” Carol Ann asked. “He’s going to love it,” Diane assured her. “After moving around for so many years, I finally feel like you and your brother are starting to get back to normal lives.” “Is Dana coming home from college?” “She’ll be here in time for your brother’s party,” Diane assured her. “And she says she has news for all of us. Do me a favor, baby, go and see if your father brought the extra chairs in before he went to work.” Carol Ann went into the living room and after a few minutes let out a scream. Diane dropped her knife and went into the living room. “What’s wrong?” Diane said as she saw the living room had been turned upside down. All of the furniture was now on the ceiling. “They’re ba-ack,” TO BE CONTINUED… Ten Years Earlier
Creighton Duke, a tall, muscular black man, had just turned in his recent bounty, a vicious wife-beater who was on the run after skipping bail. Creighton had caught up to him in a local park and taken him by surprise in order to catch him and keep the violence down as much as possible. While Creighton Duke was a strong man, capable of taking down men nearly three times his size, he didn’t like employing violence to catch his prey. He used his keen mind and logic to order to lay traps to make sure no one got hurt if possible. As soon as Duke dropped off his prey at the local police station, he received a call from a town in a local town telling him to come to the local hospital to identify a body that had been murdered recently. * Arriving at the morgue, Duke was led downstairs where a cabinet was opened and a headless body was pulled out on a slab. In a bag next to the body, a head was slowly unzipped for Duke to identify. Instead of nearly vomiting like most people would, Duke only felt heartbreak and grief for the young woman. “That’s her,” Duke said. “My cousin Sissy. She was volunteering for a summer camp this summer. How did this happen?” “Witnesses say that a masked killer named Jason Voorhees did it,” the coroner told him. “Bull. Shit,” Duke told him. “Jason Voorhees has been dead for six years. I don’t believe in ghost stories. Tell me the name of the man responsible or I’ll go out and get it, and if I catch the guy, he’ll be right here for someone else to identify.” “This is completely off the record,” the coroner told him as he pushed the body back into the freezer. “But the police report says that a mental patient has been hanging around the area, he was linked in two previous killing sprees, the first with the original Jason Voorhees and the second involving a copycat killer. Now, this is the third killing spree with the same M.O.” “So, this mental patient is going for a third round of victims, is he in custody?” “They let him go,” the coroner told him. “He was absolved of involvement when the surviving officer of the spree backed up the story.” Duke’s hand squeezed around the man’s throat and with gritted teeth and slowly squeezed. “His name.” “T— Tommy Jarvis!” “This man killed my favorite little cousin,” Duke said as he let go. “Where is he now?” “He took off right after the police arrived,” the coroner said. “Probably skipped town!” “It looks like I have new prey to hunt,” Duke said. “I’ll track him to the ends of the Earth to avenge this young lady and everyone else he’s slaughtered. And no one ever gets away from Creighton Duke when he has someone in his sights.” * Today Greenwood, Indiana In a secluded wooded area, a large three-story house sat deep in the woods. There were no neighbors around for miles and the home itself only needed slight renovations. Of course, the home itself was rumored to be haunted, something Andy Barclay would swear to since he’d heard the voices repeatedly telling to kill as he slept at night. Luckily he was able to get drunk enough to ignore the voices after a while. “It’s funny,” Jacob Johnson said as he worked on the home computer with Max Madison and Tommy Jarvis standing behind him. “There is absolutely no information about your hat, Max. I can get you a cheap knockoff, though.” “There has to be something,” Max told him. “My hat was opening portals to all kinds of different places. It’s the reason I wasn’t murdered by Jason at that cabin. I tried absolutely everything to take him out, but I couldn’t even a dent in the guy.” “Because he’s an immortal killing machine,” Tommy told him. “You think you’ve got him, but one lightning strike later and he’s back on his feet. He’s got some sort of regeneration thing going on.” “So, ever think about cutting him into pieces and burying them in different places?” Max asked as Tommy just stared at him. “Yeah, didn’t think so. So I’m basically back to square one with knowing dick about this hat.” “We’ll find something,” Jacob promised. “I’ll go to the library tomorrow and see what I can find in a physical book. In the meantime, where the hell are the others with my pizza bites?” “John and Andy will be back with groceries soon,” Tommy promised. “In the meantime, I suggest we practice at the target range while we wait.” “Oh, goody, my favorite part of the day,” Jacob sarcastically told him. * At the local grocery store, the team’s van had pulled into a parking space as Andy ran ahead to get a grocery cart with John yelling after him to slow down. Meanwhile, Creighton Duke had watched them pull in, knowing sooner or later his prey would arrive. After talking to people around town he discovered that someone connected to Tommy Jarvis usually showed up every Thursday to pick up supplies, most likely with stolen money they got from one scam or another. “Alright, let’s get this over with,” John said as he took the cart. “I hate grocery shopping. I might have Cody take this over, he’s more of a social person than I am.” “That’s why you need to start dating,” Andy told him as they walked down the cereal aisle where he spotted a row of Good Guys Cereal. “You know, a date? Where you go out to meet girls? Do whatever people do when they’re with someone they like. Hold hands or pet dogs or something.” “You have no idea what men and women do together, do you?” “I do not,” Andy said. “I just know it involves birds and bees and occasionally a midget.” “Well, anyway… I’m not ready to date yet,” John told him as he turned around to see Andy using a magic marker to draw on the faces of the Good Guys on the cereal boxes, using mustaches and black eyes. “It’s been four years and you’re still hung up on the girl who broke your heart?” Andy asked as he wrote ‘fuck you’ on the forehead of one of the Good Guys. “Move on, man.” “She’s dead because I wasn’t there to save her,” John told him. “I should have fought harder for her to stay with me where it was safe.” “Didn’t Jacob get impaled because of you when him and Tommy found you?” “But he was still alive,” John stated as he grabbed a few boxes of Cheerios. “People keep forgetting that.” “What, no Frosted Flakes?” “These are healthier,” John told him as he grabbed a few more sugarless cereals. “We have to stay in shape.” “Fuck healthier,” Andy said as he grabbed some Fruity Pebbles. “I want flavor.” “Fine, you argue with Tommy,” John said as they passed the alcohol aisle where Andy stopped. John grabbed Andy by the shirt to the next aisle. “Nope. No booze. You deal with your problems like the rest of us do, with repression and self-loathing. And maybe a little crying yourself to sleep at night. Oh, we need kleenex!” As John was about to turn the corner, Creighton Duke stood in front of the cart. “John Tate?” “I go by ’Strode’ now,” John told him. “Can I help you, chief?” “My name is Creighton Duke and I’ve been searching for you and your friends for a while,” Creighton said as he pulled out a small notebook and flipped to the correct page. “Six years ago a killer came to your private school with your mother claiming him to be her brother, a violent psychopath. He killed several people before escaping.” “My Uncle Michael,” John told him as Andy quietly snuck away. “His return broke my mother, she ended up in a mental ward because of him.” “A mental ward that she escaped from over a year ago,” Duke said. “After another round of murders. You were spotted near the scene along with a man named Tommy Jarvis. What exactly is your relationship with Mr. Jarvis? Friend, relative… lover?” “Not that it’s any of your business, but he’s my best friend,” John told him. “Is there something you wanted?” “You entered this store with one Andrew Barclay. Disappeared from foster care four years ago after the murder of his foster father. I’m going to have to ask you both to come with me.” “Yeah, no, we’re not doing that,” John told him. “You can come quietly or make a scene and I can drag you out of this store by force,” Duke told him. “Either way, you’re coming with me.” “You want to try to take me?” John asked as Duke advanced toward him. “Shit, I didn’t think you’d actually do it!” “I tried to get you to come along nicely,” Duke said as Andy let out a loud whistle, causing Duke’s head to turn. A shopping car plowed through, hitting Duke and knocking him into a display of soup cans. “Waiting for an engraved invite?” Andy asked. “Move your ass, Strode!” John started to run as Duke recovered and stood up, spotting Andy. “That’s right, big boy, follow me!” Andy ran down another aisle with Duke in quick pursuit, getting angrier by the minute and having to remind himself not to hit a child. As he turned the corner, he slipped in a puddle of vegetable oil that Andy had spilled on his way up the aisle before running off again. A few minutes later, John was trying to find Andy, who rushed up to him and grabbed his arm. “Let’s go!” As he started to run toward the front, Andy grabbed his arm. “This way! Trust me!” Duke had gotten back up, and pulled a tranquilizer gun out of his trench coat. “That punk is toast!” Duke spotted footprints from the vegetable oil heading toward the front of the store, a trail made by Andy to throw him off as the two young men ran out of the emergency exit. “We gotta tell Tommy about this,” John said as they headed to the van as he looked down at Andy’s stocking feet. “Andy… where are your shoes?” “In the van,” “Why are they in the van?” * Duke tried to push the front doors open only to find that they were tied together tightly with Andy’s shoelaces. As he looked out of the window he saw the van peeling out of the parking lot. * “I can’t believe that guy thought you and Tommy were holding hands together,” Andy laughed. “You’re not, are you? I mean, I won’t judge you for it, at least let me into the loop if you’re doing that kind of thing.” “NO!” John shouted. “I mean, there was that winter we were hiding out in Canada and we had to go for three months with no heat or electricity for three months, but we were fully clothed the whole time! We just did what we had to in order to stay warm!” Andy just stared blankly at him. “And you clearly have no idea what I’m talking about. We gotta get home and hope that guy hasn’t tracked us to the house.” “We didn’t get any food,” Andy reminded him. “We still have food at home,” John told him. “We’ll get groceries later, we have to tell the others that there’s trouble.” * Max found Cody sitting out by the pool, looking at pictures of himself with his ex-girlfriend Bridget. “You missed practice,” Max told him. “Never fired a gun before. It was kind of fun.” “Wasn’t in the mood,” Cody told him. Cody wasn’t fond of guns, he’d had to listen to gunfire outside of his window every night while living with his caretaker Morty. “Still hung up on your ex?” “She’s going to come back to me,” Cody said. “Any minute now she’s going to realize she made a mistake and she’s going to pick up the phone. You’ll see.” “And what if she’s moved on?” Cody stood up and pulled off his shirt while kicking off his shoes. “I’m going for a swim,” Cody jumped into the water, getting his hair wet as he came to the surface. “Come on, get in!” “I don’t swim, not anymore,” Max said. “The guy who put Jason Voorhees down in a lake doesn’t swim?” Cody asked. “Yeah, right. Now get in here before I drag you in.” Max walked into the house as Cody swam to the edge. “You know he almost drowned when he was younger,” Jacob said as he walked out of the house. “Really traumatized him. Guy was a swimming champion and he lost his entire future in one afternoon.” “Why didn’t he say anything?” Cody asked as he stood at the side of the pool as Jacob kneeled down and smacked him in the back of the head. “Because he’s traumatized!” Jacob shouted. “Get a towel, John’s on his way in and he says something’s going down.” * “This guy’s intent of finding Jacob and getting at the rest of us,” John told the others minutes later. “We were lucky to get away.” “It’s Jacob’s grandparents,” Tommy realized. “I knew they’d eventually find a way to track us down. They must have hired someone to bring him back. Does he know where we live?” “No,” John told him. “Otherwise he probably would have confronted us here. But this guy looks dangerous.” “Relax, there’s six of us,” Cody told him. “There’s no way can he take all of us.” “Numbers don’t mean dick in our world,” John told him. “He’s right, Jason Voorhees on taken on entire groups at once and slaughtered them all,” Tommy said. “We need to be on our guard and have a plan if he shows up here. Our top priority is keeping Jacob safe. Where’d he go?” * Upstairs, Jacob was quickly packing what he could. “I gotta get out of here,” Jacob said as he packed as much underwear as he could into his backpack. “I can’t go back to that town.” Andy stood at the door, wishing he had a drink right now. “He doesn’t even know where we live.” “Doesn’t matter,” Jacob told him. “If he finds me, I’m dead. Freddy will kill me the instant I step into Springwood.” “Didn’t you beat Freddy?” “I took away his power,” Jacob said as he started shoving socks into his bag. “He’s probably already recovered and is more powerful than ever, but he’s bound to Springwood. He can’t get me if I’m nowhere near there.” “So you’re running away?” “I’m going back to L.A.,” Jacob said. “At least until I can get overseas. Maybe I’ll dick around Europe for a few years, but I ain’t going back to Springwood!” Andy walked over and slapped Jacob in the face as hard as he was able. “Listen to me, you whiny little bitch! You’re the fucking Dream Master! You have powers most of us only dream of and you’re running away just because a guy with a bad facial complexion has it in for you? Grow the fuck up. You’re not going on anywhere. You have five brothers that are going to protect you. This guy wants you, he has to go through us. So grow up and help us figure out how to stop this guy because no one’s taking my family anywhere.” “You think I’m family?” Jacob asked. “You guys are the brothers I never had, and never really wanted,” Andy said. “You guys have always been to bat for me, so now it’s my turn. Get your ass downstairs, we’re not letting anyone take you.” Jacob sniffled a little as he hugged Andy. “Okay, now you’re making it weird.” * “This guy’s hanging around town, waiting for us,” Tommy said. “At some point, someone’s going to tell him something that’ll bring him to us, so we have to counter that. Maybe lead him somewhere where we have the upper hand.” “The farther away from this town, the better,” Cody told him. “Maybe somewhere so we can face him one to six.” “We also need to find out as much as we can about this guy,” Tommy said. “You said his name was Creighton Duke? Maybe there’s something online about him.” “I’ll start checking,” Max told him. “Maybe Jacob can get inside his head.” “No,” Jacob immediately said. “I’m done invading people’s private space. I don’t like going into people’s dreams without their permission.” “Fine, but in the meantime, someone should go back into town and trail this guy,” Tommy said. “John? Take the van, but be careful. As soon as we figure out a game plan, we’ll call you with the details. Stay safe, buddy.” “I don’t remember volunteering for this,” John said as he grabbed his keys. “You’re the only one with a license besides me.” “I have a learner’s permit,” Cody said. “That expired two months ago.” “We need more older dudes in this group,” John said as he left. * “Why can’t I use my sword?” Andy asked as he was handed a .38 to keep in his back pocket. “I’m better with a sword.” “Because you have to be close in range to use a sword, and it this guy’s as dangerous as I assume, I don’t want you getting close to this guy,” Tommy said. “John, Cody and I will take him hand to hand if it comes to it. If all else fails, Max is to take you and Jacob and portal away.” “Portal to where?” Max asked as he sat at the computer. “I don’t even know where to go where we’d be safe. I haven’t even used this power since Crystal Lake.” “Anywhere that’s not here,” Tommy told him as he saw Jacob sitting on the couch, handing him a gun. “Relax, he’s not getting anywhere near you.” “You can’t protect me forever,” Jacob said. “Even if we beat this guy, how do we know they won’t just hire someone worse?” “Why don’t I just go to Springwood and talk to your grandparents?” Tommy said. “Make them see that you’re not safe in that town.” “Because Freddy will get you,” Jacob told him. “Or they’ll have you arrested. Or my Grandpa will shoot you himself. You wouldn’t be safe in Springwood.” “We’ll figure something out,” Tommy promised. “But you’re not going back there.” “Alright, here’s everything on Creighton Duke,” Max said as he looked at the screen. “It’s not much, but he’s a bounty hunter, and he’s good at what he does. No one’s ever gotten away from him. And apparently, he’s after you, Tommy.” “What? Why?” “For kidnapping Jacob, you idiot,” Max told him. “His grandparents are offering a 5,000 dollar reward for his safe return. Plus Duke has money out for info leading to your location. Not you, just your location.” “Probably wanting to take me in himself,” Tommy said. “If he’s so hard up for this fight, I’ll go to him. Alone.” “You can’t!” Jacob said as a crash was heard from outside. The group looked out the window to see the van sitting in a ditch. “JOHN!” The team rushed over to the van, finding no one in the driver’s seat, only John’s torn shirt sitting in the seat. Tommy saw a note and picked it up. “He’s got John,” Tommy said. “There’s an address saying to bring Jacob or we’ll never see John again.” “Well, looks like tonight assholes die,” Andy said as he pulled out the .38. “He’s fucked with the wrong group.” “Let’s go get our boy back,” Tommy told them. “Jacob, I want you to stay behind.” “Fuck. That,” Jacob told him. “He kidnapped our brother. We’re taking this asshole down a notch, so all bets are off. Let’s get John back.” * In an old abandoned factory the next town over, an unconscious John had been handcuffed to a pipe with his hands over his head. Not too far away, Creighton Duke sharpened a knife in the corner. The others that came he’d only capture and take to the police, and Jacob & Andy would be returned to Jacob’s grandparents and the foster care system. But Tommy? Tommy Jarvis wouldn’t leave the factory alive. * “This is the place,” Tommy said as the van pulled up to the factory. It didn’t take long to get the van out of the ditch once everyone pushed at once. “Alright, Max & Cody, you two sneak in through the back. Andy and Jacob, you climb that fire escape and go in through that window up there. I’ll go in through the front door and hopefully draw his fire. We’ll all meet up to find John. And if things go south, Max, you get Jacob and Andy and portal the hell out of there.” “I don’t like this,” Jacob said. “I don’t want to run away like that.” “Look, it doesn’t matter what happens to me and Cody,” Tommy said. Cody raised his hand to protest as Tommy looked at him. “But if you get taken to Springwood, it’s all over. This is all to protect you.” “Even if all of you die?” “Let’s just hope it doesn’t come to that,” Tommy said. “Let’s do this so no one dies, not even this asshole who took our friend. He’s human from what I can tell, and we don’t kill humans.” As the team got out of the van, Duke watched them on a surveillance camera as they headed toward the building. * “Here we are,” Andy whispered as he pried the window open once they reached the top of the fire escape. “If this guy’s hurt John…” “I’m sure he’s okay,” Jacob said as they crawled through the window. “Why haven’t you gone into his dreams to check on him?” Andy asked. “You could probably even find out where he is in here.” “Because I’m scared,” Jacob told him. “I’m scared to look because… what he is hurt or worse and I can’t do anything to help him? What if he hurts any of you? I’d never forgive myself.” “You’re scared?” Andy asked. “John’s the first person since I lost Danny that I’ve seen as a true brother. I mean, you’re all like family now, but John? I do care about him more than anyone. I don’t want to lose him, either.” “Andy Barclay actually cares about someone?” Jacob asked. “I never thought I’d— Oh, fuck.” Jacob felt his neck, where a tranquilizer dart had just been shot into him. He fell to the ground as Andy pulled out his gun. “JACOB!” Before Andy could stand up, two darts were shot into his chest. He fell backward as Duke stepped into the light. “They’re just tranqs,” Duke told him. “Powerful ones. You’ll both be asleep for at least 12 hours, just long enough to kill Jarvis and get you two home safe.” * Cody and Max broke through the back door of the factory as Cody pulled out a flashlight. “How are you at hand to hand fighting?” Cody asked Max. “Not very,” Max told him. “Got beat up a lot in school. You?” “Raised on the streets after my parents died,” Cody told him. “My guardian Morty took me to the local gym a lot. Learned how to defend myself through boxing.” “You don’t have any other family?” Max asked. “I have an older sister somewhere, but I’ve never met her,” Cody told him. “They put her up for adoption when she was born because my parents weren’t ready to have a kid yet. She’d be about five years older than me now.” “Ever think about trying to find her?” “Nah,” Cody said. “Why would she want the loser brother she never met hanging around? Besides, she’s probably got a good life now.” A creaking sound came from across the room as Cody pulled out a small crossbow. “Where’d you get that?” Max asked. “The weapons cache,” Cody told him. “I hate guns. Alright, asshole, let John go and I won’t have to use this.” “Go ahead,” Duke told him. “But you might want to step a little closer.” “Max, go find Andy and Jacob, keep them safe,” Cody said. “I’ll keep this guy occupied.” The two stepped forward, hearing a strange noise like a string snapping. They looked down to see two snares wrap around their ankles before yanking them into the air, suspending them upside down in the air six feet over the ground. As soon as they were pulled up, Max’s hat fell off of his head, landing on the ground. “Behave yourselves, boys,” Duke told them. “You won’t be there for long. I’ll call the police to get you once I’ve finished my business here.” “That’s nice of him,” Cody laughed as he looked at Max and stopped. “We’re going to jail.” * Tommy had his gun ready as he stepped through the back entrance of the factory, finding he was in a loading dock. “Alright, just have to figure out where he’s keeping John,” Tommy told himself. “I just hope the others are okay.” As Tommy slowly walked through the area, a security camera was keeping an eye on him as Duke watched from a security room, waiting for the right moment to avenge his lost loved one. TO BE CONTINUED… A week after Cody and Max moved in, the new rooming arrangements had been made between the six housemates. It had been decided that everyone would have a roommate just in case of a night attack, so no one would be left alone. John had taken Andy in as a roommate since John had started becoming more protective of the boy lately, mainly due to their recent bonding experience in Los Angeles. John liked the idea of having a little brother to watch over, so the two rooming together seemed like a good idea. Plus he figured out how to keep Andy from sneaking out of the room at night to sneak alcohol.
Andy tiptoed toward the door late at night as John rolled over, sleepily saying. “There’s not a drop of booze for ten miles, and if you think about stealing the van, you’ll be in the doghouse. Literally, we built one to chain you up to if you piss me off.” Tommy had let Max move into his room, due to their shared experience with Jason Voorhees. Max still hadn’t really opened up to anyone, something that Tommy was hoping to help him get through. In the meantime, Max had started hanging out with Cody, who was ecstatic to have a gay best friend to talk to. It also helped Tommy to have someone to talk him through the constant night terrors he had about Jason. That left Jacob and Cody to bunk together. Jacob had insisted that he didn’t need a roommate, but Cody had no other room to sleep in because the other spare rooms still needed to be fixed up and fumigated. The bedroom that John had wanted suffered from a small spider problem. One that would put the film ‘Arachnophobia’ to shame. The other rooms were filled with mold, suffered from a hell dimension problem, and prompted people to kill while they slept. So Jacob made room for Cody in his bedroom, where a new bed was set up on the other side of the room. The first night that they roomed together, Cody exited the bathroom in a pair of green pajama pants as he climbed onto his bed, grabbing a book from his nightstand to read before bed. As he opened the book, he saw Jacob sitting on his bed, fully clothed. “It’s time for bed, dude,” Cody told him. “Aren’t you going to get ready to sleep?” “I am ready,” Jacob told him as he leaned back against the headboard. “You sleep with your clothes and shoes on?” “I never sleep underdressed,” Jacob told him. “Saves me the time of having to dream up clothes once I’m dreaming.” “You can control that?” Cody asked. “I’m the Dream Master, bud,” Jacob said. “I can control everything in my dreams. What I wear, where I go, what I do. It’s pretty sweet.” “How’d you manage to do that?” Cody asked. “It wasn’t easy, took years to master,” Jacob said as he stared at the ceiling. “And for the longest time, I had to do it alone. I tried to find someone to hang out within the Dreamworld, but… you probably don’t want to hear a story.” “Are you kidding? This sounds awesome,” Cody said as he sat up. “Okay, I guess I can tell you the story,” Jacob told him. “It started about a year ago after we first moved into this place. We all had our own rooms and none of us were really used to each other yet, especially Andy, so it got kind of lonely. John had Tommy to talk to and Andy kept to himself….” * 10 Months Earlier “I don’t like it here,” Jacob said as he walked into the bedroom. “Once we reinforce the doors and walls, it’s going to be the perfect base. No monster will ever get in,” Tommy assured him. “This is the perfect hideaway for a group of monster hunters, you’ll see. In six months we’re going to have everything we need set up. Just get some rest and we’ll talk about it some more tomorrow.” As Tommy left the room, Jacob peered the door across the hall where Andy’s door stood open. Andy sat on his bed, just staring at a picture of Danny and sobbing. “Andy, do you want to maybe—“ Jacob started to say as Andy slammed the door shut. “Okay, maybe not.” Jacob returned to his room and his closed own door before sitting down on his bed. Kicking his shoes off, Jacob laid down and stared at the ceiling as he drifted off to sleep, soon finding himself in the Dream World. He found himself lying in a field with the sun shining overhead. “Well, better than Freddy Krueger’s front yard,” Jacob said to himself as he stood up and waited patiently for a second. “Well, I’m bored.” * John sat on the beach next to his girlfriend Molly. The sun was setting as John held her hand, kissing her softly. “It’s been a difficult road, but we’re together,” John told her. “And nothing can ever separate us ag—“ A volleyball landed at John’s feet as Jacob ran up to him in a tank top and shorts. “My bad,” Jacob told him. “Who’s up for a game?” “Jacob, what the hell are you doing here?” John asked as he stood up. “This is my dream!” “Yeah, but I felt bored and thought you’d want to play.” “I’m trying to have a nice dream and… just get the hell out of here!” John told him. “Dream time is for dreaming of good things, like girls and not worrying about monsters.” “Yeah, but I just—“ John just stared him down as Jacob backed away. * Andy stood in the kitchen of his rent-controlled apartment, making breakfast for his mother on the morning of his 6th birthday. He had burnt toast with a huge slab of butter; an over-filled glass of orange juice and a bowl of cereal with a large of sugar poured in. “So, this is where you used to live?” Jacob asked as he looked around. “What the fuck are you doing here?” Andy asked as he turned around. “You shouldn’t be here.” “A birthday party? This is the day you met Chucky, isn’t it? That’s why you have the Good Guy gear on.” “Fuck you,” Andy said as he started pulling off his Good Guy pajamas, tossing them away. He then stared down at his Good Guy Underoos. “You can talk to me, Andy,” Jacob told him. “I just want to help—“ “I DON’T NEED HELP!” Andy shouted as he rushed Jacob, pushing him through the door and into the hall. “Leave me alone!” Jacob went to open the door only to find the doorway replaced by a brick wall. “Fine,” Jacob said as he walked away. “I’ll be here when you’re ready.” * A thunderstorm poured rain down as Jacob found himself at Camp Crystal Lake to see what Tommy had been dreaming of. “Probably should have dressed warmer,” Jacob said as he shivered from the cold. He walked until he saw what looked like Tommy holding a machete in one hand and a ball bat in the other. Through the rain he saw Jason Voorhees standing over him as Tommy attacked with everything he had, sending Jason to the ground as he didn’t let up for a second. “Tommy?” “Jacob?” Tommy asked as he lost his focus, giving Jason time to strike him in the knee, sending him to the ground. Tommy held his leg in pain as Jason grabbed the machete and stood over him, ready to drive it through Tommy’s chest. “NO!” Jacob shouted as he held out his hand to pause the scene. He ran over to help Tommy up. “What the hell are you doing?” Tommy asked. “I was beating him!” “That’s not the real Jason,” Jacob told him. “No fucking duh!” Tommy shouted. “But this is my happy place that I go to when I dream. Killing that son of a bitch is the only thing that makes me happy. Why are you here?” “I got bored,” Jacob told him. “Andy and John don’t want to play and—“ “Jacob, you need to stay in your own dreams,” Tommy told him. “Find your own adventures. We all have things that we’d rather dream about at night, okay? You shouldn’t invade other people’s personal space. Now go back to your own little corner of the sky and I’ll see you in the morning.” Before Jacob could say anything he found himself back in the field. “Find my own thing,” Jacob sighed. “But what is my thing?” As he started walking, a voice suddenly shouted out to him. “HELP ME!” Jacob turned around as the voice echoed around him. He looked down at his reflection in the water which was rippling. He kneeled to get a closer look as a human-shaped water creature jumped out at him. “PLEASE!” As the form collided with Jacob, it splashed all over him, forcing Jacob to wake up in his bed. Now soaking wet, Jacob looked at his shaking hands. Whatever that was, he could feel the scared person’s voice echoing right into his very soul. “What the hell was that?” * The next morning, the group sat at the breakfast table as Jacob’s hands shook while holding a cup of coffee. “Look, I didn’t mean to yell at you last night,” John said as he sat down. “It’s just… dreams are the only time I can see Molly now. I want to spend as much time as I can remembering her.” “I did mean to yell at him,” Andy said. “Stay the hell out of my dreams.” Tommy brought some toast over to Jacob, sitting it down in front of him. “Eat something, kid. You look like hell this morning. Did you get any rest after you left our dreams?” Jacob stared down at the toast in front of him, where the butter on the bread started morphing into a message. “The answers you seek are at the local library.” Jacob took a long drink from his coffee and when he looked back down, the message was gone. “Earth to Jacob,” Tommy said as he snapped his fingers. “What’s going on?” “I gotta go,” Jacob said as he stood up and backed away toward the door. “I’ll be back in a few hours. I just— I just have to go.” “I’m getting worried about him,” John said. “He’s been awfully jittery lately.” “He’s still scared that Freddy’s going to find a way to get to him,” Tommy told him. “Which is why we need to start researching ways to help him. Maybe find a way to trap Freddy ourselves. Between the four of us, we should be able to take him down.” “What’s this ‘we’ bullshit?” Andy asked. “My only concerns are keeping Chucky and the Cult of Thorn off my back. And maybe finding my mother. That’s it.” * Jacob rode his bike to the library in town, which was only a half-hour bike ride. He’d found an old bike behind the cabin when the group had found the old abandoned house and fixed it up with Tommy’s help. It still looked a bit beaten up, but it rode like new. Plus it was good exercise, making Tommy and John both want to buy a bike to stay in shape. As he parked the bike outside the library, Jacob calmly walked in and approached the counter. “Do— do you have any books on dreaming?” Jacob asked. “Like, how to control them when you’re asleep?” The old woman looked up at him, sizing the teenager up. “Your friend has been expecting you. She’s right over there.” “My friend?” Jacob asked as he looked across the room, where a short, older woman sat at a table with several books already picked out. Slowly walking over, Jacob calmly sat down. “What is this?” “I sensed your aura calling for help last night,” the woman said as she took his hand, feeling his psychic vibes. “Ah, there it is. The Dream Master, but you still have a lot to learn about your abilities.” “You know what I can do?” Jacob asked. “Can you tell me what that thing was in the water? Can you help me to reach my parents?” “Alas, no, child,” the woman told him. “I’m only a medium, I have no power in the dream realm. All I can do is put you on the path to finding your answers. The thing you saw was a person, a human boy, and right now his soul is trapped in another realm called The Further. But you can’t reach it through a dream, child. To save this boy, you must unlock a new power.” The woman put a book into Jacob’s hands. He looked down at a book on astral projection. “This will get you started, but the boy you must rescue will be your guide to mastering this power,” the woman said. “You must learn from each other, protecting the other as you venture the Dream World. Together you may just find the entrance to the Beautiful Dream where the Dream Warriors are.” “Sounds simple enough,” Jacob sarcastically said as the woman stood up. “Who are you? And how do I contact you if I need you again?” “My name is Tangina, child,” the woman smiled. “Trust me, the next time you need my help, I’ll come to you. Good luck, Dream Master.” Jacob stared down at the book, and when he looked back up, Tangina was gone. “That wasn’t creepy at all.” * That night, Jacob paced back and forth in his bedroom while reading from the book he’d borrowed from the library. “Okay, I can do this,” Jacob said to himself. “Just have to really focus all of my energy on this and—“ Jacob slowly turned to the door, seeing Andy standing there with a bottle of vodka in his hand. “Do you need something?” Jacob asked. Andy fell back on Jacob’s bed and lifted his leg. “Shoelaces are too tight, I can’t get my shoes off,” Andy drunkenly told him. “I’m about to cut the damn things.” Jacob just sighed as he sat down and worked to undo the laces. Soon he was able to pop both sneakers off as he realized Andy had fallen asleep. “Dammit, kid,” Jacob said as he put the half-empty bottle on his nightstand before going to pick Andy up, but realized how peaceful he looked. “Fine, just for tonight.” Lifting Andy’s legs onto the bed, he covered the boy with a blanket before grabbing the book he was reading. Jacob resolved to sleep on the floor that night, he’d probably need the room for whatever was going to happen. Sitting down Indian-style, Jacob closed his eyes and started taking several deep breaths and counting backward from 100. As he got closer to 1, he felt himself getting drowsier and drowsier… 5…4…3…2… Jacob opened his eyes, finding that he was floating over his own body, which was now limp on the floor below. Jacob let out a scream and fell, hitting the floor just beside where his body lay. He quickly scrambled to his feet and backed away, hitting a door that wasn’t there before. “What the hell did I get myself into?” Jacob asked as he looked up at the large green door. Standing up, he slowly turned the door handle, finding a winding staircase that seemed to go on forever. “That doesn’t look like Disney Land. Hey, I can astral project now! I actually can go to Disney Land for my birthday.” After what seemed like forever, Jacob finally reached the bottom of the stairwell, arriving in a thin, dark corridor. As he got closer to the glowing tint of a fiery red light, he heard a record scratch where Tiny Tim’s ‘Tip Toe Through the Tulips’ started playing loudly. He got close to the door and slowly peeked inside to see a large theater with a stage and balcony. Hanging high above the stage sat a suspended cage with a teenage boy huddled in the corner. He wore a pair of pajama pants and a blue and white baseball jersey. “What the hell?” Jacob asked as he snuck in. “Is that who I’m here to rescue?” Sneaking into the theatre, Jacob looked around to find the lever to lower the cage. That’s when he noticed… it. A large red-faced creature up in the balcony, sharpening what looked like extremely sharp nails on a large sharpener. Sparks flew out as the nails touched it, sharpening them to a deadly capacity. Quickly working to lower the cage without dropping it, Jacob quickly rushed over to unlock the cage. “Hurry up, I don’t want to be here when that thing gets down here,” Jacob told him as the boy stood up. He was the same age as Jacob with dark blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. He quickly shook off a funny feeling as he looked at the young man and pulled the door open. “About time,” the boy said. “I’ve been calling for help for days now.” “Yeah, you’re welcome,” Jacob sarcastically told him. “I had to learn to astral project to even get here.” “You had to… learn?” the boy asked as he looked at Jacob. Astral projection came easily to the young man, like second nature. “Who the hell are you?” “My name’s Jacob, but I guess you can call me The Dream Master,” “I’m Dalton, and astral projection is something you can either do or you can’t. There is no ‘I learned over the course of a day’.” “That’s why I’m The Dream Master, dummy,” Jacob re-iterated as he paused to listen. “You gonna complain about this rescue or are we gonna get the hell out of here? The music’s stopped.” “Run,” Dalton told him as he realized what that meant. “Now!” As the two turned to run, they immediately found themselves face to face with the red-faced demon. As the monster raised its sharpened hand to attack, Jacob raised a psychic shield of his own to block. The nails scraped across the shield, making a horrific scraping sound. The demon brought his hand down again, shattering the shield as Dalton hit the demon in the back with a pipe. As the monster turned its attention to the boy, standing at its full height to tower over him, Jacob focused his dream powers. “I hope I can use my powers here,” Jacob said as he unleashed a barrage of punches, flips, and kicks at the monster, not letting up for a second. He jumped for one final kick, sending the monster flying off of the stage. Landing on his feet, Jacob grabbed Dalton’s hand. “Let’s roll.” “How did you do that? Wait, wait, ‘you’re the Dream Master’, never mind.” “You’re learning, you’re not as dumb as you seem,” Jacob told him. The two started running out of the theater, ending up in a dark void on the other side as the demon started giving chase, knocking chairs out its way before jumping onto the wall and quickly skittering toward them at a lightning pace. “Where are we now?” Jacob asked. “The Further,” Dalton told him. “It’s where you go when your astral form gets lost. If they catch you here, then the lost souls try to take your physical body so they can return to the real world. We have to get back to our physical bodies.” “Is that how you ended up here?” “It was a stupid mistake,” Dalton told him. “When I was ten, I found out I could astral project. That demon caught me and tried to steal my body, but my Dad and a psychic rescued me. But my dad ended up getting possessed and killed the psychic who saved me. We got my Dad back, but then we had the ability to astral project erased from our minds. Only a few years later, it started coming back to me. I was slowly getting the ability to astral project back and I have no idea why. I didn’t tell anyone because I didn’t want to worry my parents, so I started practicing, getting better so I wouldn’t get caught again. Then I thought that there might be others like me in The Further, trapped by the ghosts there. So I decided to try to help them, but… the demon caught me and trapped me. That’s when I called for help and ended up bringing you to me.” “I didn’t know how to astral project at first,” Jacob said. “Maybe… maybe there aren’t that many people out there that can do it.” “So I really am alone in the world,” Dalton told him as he turned his back. Before Jacob could say anything, the red-faced demon burst out of the ground toward him, ready to strike. Jacob rallied his power and let loose a powerful sonic scream, blasting the demon as far away as he could send him. Jacob, his nose bleeding, fell to his knees. “You’re not alone,” Jacob said as he fell forward, having drained himself of his power as he passed out. “So, you’re not a Superman,” Dalton said as he picked Jacob up by putting an arm around Jacob’s shoulder. “And we’re not out of the woods yet. We gotta get out of The Further before—“ The ghosts of every spirit in The Further started gathering to surround the two. The doomed souls who never passed into the next life for some reason or another, but most of them had done some sort of evil in their life to trap them there after death. Dalton slowly started backing away before he started running, carrying Jacob as far as he could, having to constantly change directions as more spirits popped up in front of him. “Don’t you dare!” an old woman said as she smacked Dalton across the face. Two twin girls appeared behind him, one brandishing a knife as a demonic smile suddenly appeared on their faces. Jacob softly moaned as Dalton slung him around his shoulders and started to run faster. “Come on, wake up,” Dalton said. “We’re in deep shit here, man. I don’t know how to fight them like you.” “Tap into your dream power,” Jacob whispered weakly. “My dream power?” Dalton asked. “How do I—“ “Just think about what you want, what’s the one power you’ve always wanted?” Finding himself completely surrounded, Dalton gently put Jacob on the ground. He stood up and closed his eyes as The Further started shaking and within seconds a metallic ’shing’ sound was heard as Dalton found himself covered in orange and black armor that looked like a legally safe version of Iron Man. “I can work with this!” Dalton said as he looked at his hand. He turned his attention to the ghosts that had surrounded him. “I’ve had enough of this place, so I’m taking my new buddy and getting out of here!” Though weakened, Jacob opened his eyes enough to see a light show going on, blasting spirits every which way. After a few minutes, Dalton picked his friend up, flying out of The Further. A short while later, Jacob and Dalton sat on a beach overlooking the ocean, just getting to know each other and sharing their stories, although Jacob left out the part about his dream demon wanting him dead. “Do you think you could teach me more about projecting?” Jacob asked. “Only if you show me how to use more of those dream powers,” Dalton replied. “I’m kind of starting to think that you were meant to come to get me from the Further.” “Yeah,” Jacob smiled. “I think so, too. Maybe together we can go back and see if you were right about finding others who need help. We can be like a superhero team.” “Cool,” Dalton told him. “We could really kick ass in the dream world. I’m really glad we met. See you right here tomorrow night?” “This can be our own little dream spot,” Jacob smiled. * Jacob woke up the next morning with Andy standing over him, finishing his vodka. “You got an erection, dude,” Andy said as he stumbled out of the room as Jacob looked down at his pants. * Now “Tell me you didn’t fuck on the first date,” Cody said as he lay back on his bed. “What are you talking about?” Jacob asked. “It was insanely obvious from the second you saw him,” Cody told him. “You have a crush on this guy.” “That’s insane,” Jacob told him. “We’re just friends who hang out in the dream world. Plus we’re pen pals, that’s all. “Yeah, Andy mentioned what you do with those letters,” Cody said. “There’s no shame in it, you gotta let go of that tension somehow. At least cop to having feelings for this guy.” “I don’t have feelings for this guy,” Jacob told him. “Now good night, I’m going to meet up with my friend.” “Sure,” Cody laughed as he got into bed. “Sure you are. The friend who writes you love letters.” “They are not love letters,” Jacob said as he got under the covers and closed his eyes, heading to the dream world. * “So, what do you say we head into The Further to see how far in we can get?” Jacob asked. “Actually, I needed to talk to you about something,” Dalton told him. “My family’s moving and… I might not be around for a few days. Lot of late nights packing and getting ready for the move.” “But I’ll see you when you get back, right?” “Definitely,” Dalton told him. “I just figured that since we won’t see each other for a little while, we’d have fun tonight. Maybe… talk about something I’ve been wondering about for a while and— aw, the hell with it.” Dalton grabbed Jacob and passionately kissed him. He pulled back and Jacob blushed. “I really like you, Jacob,” Dalton told him. “I don’t want to ruin our friendship, but— I really want more. When I’m with you, I just— I want to be with you as more than friends. I want to hold your hand and kiss you and tell you how special you are.” “Does that mean that you want me to—“ “Be my dream boyfriend?” Dalton asked. “I hope so. I mean, if you feel the same way, that is. If not, I don’t know, I don’t want to lose you as a friend. But ever since we met, it’s felt like we’re meant for something more.”” “I’ve never felt like this about anyone,” Jacob told him. “I always thought I liked girls, then… I met you. I want to be with you, too.” “So that’s a yes?” Jacob leaned in to gently kiss him before pulling back. “Could you speak up? I didn’t quite hear that,” Dalton teased as the two kissed again. * As Jacob slept, a smile crossed his face while he spent one final night with his official boyfriend. * A week later, the Lambert family sat in the station wagon, staring at their old home for the final time. “Everyone buckled in?” Josh Lambert asked as he looked into the backseat where his oldest son, 17-year-old Dalton; 15-year-old Foster and 7-year-old Cali sat in the backseat. “What are you happy about today?” Foster asked. “We’re leaving our friends and our home behind. I hate this.” “Foster, your father just got a high paying teaching position,” Renai Lambert told him. “We could use the money, especially now that you kids are getting older. And why you are smiling this morning? You’re never this happy.” Dalton took a deep breath. “Mom, Dad… I’m bi-sexual and… I have a boyfriend. We just made it official last night. Online that is. That’s where we’ve been talking. Online. On a computer.” “Well, congratulations, son,” Josh said. “Do we get to meet this boy?” “Do you think I could invite him over some night? He kind of lives a few states away,” “I’ll tell you what,” Renai told him. “When we get settled in, you can invite him to spend the weekend. We’ll have a guest room for him and his parents to stay in once we get the house ready.” “He doesn’t have parents, just older brothers,” Dalton told him. “But I’m not even sure if he wants to meet me. We’ve just been talking… online. I’m afraid if he meets me in real life, he won’t like me.” “Smart guy, I like him already,” Foster joked as Callie punched his arm. Josh saw the look on Dalton’s face and realized something was up. “We’ll talk about this more when we get to the new house,” Josh told him. “Alright, everyone ready? Alright, say goodbye to California. Springwood, here we come!” * “It took some digging, but I finally have information on your grandson,” As Doris and Dan Jordan Sr sat on the couch, they looked at the information being relayed to them, including surveillance photos and documents. At the top was a picture of Tommy Jarvis walking alongside a 12-year-old Jacob Johnson. “This is the last photo of the boy I could find, taken near a motel in Chicago four years ago. It’s taken a lot of effort to track him, but I believe I’ve found the man who took your grandchild. Since then it appears that he’s kidnapped another boy and is now working with an accomplice who himself is wanted in questioning with a recent string of murders in the Los Angeles area.” “But— but you’re going to bring our grandson home, right?” Doris asked hopefully. “That’s what you’re paying me for. The boy will be returned to you very soon,” Bounty Hunter Creighton Duke said as he looked at the photo of Tommy Jarvis. “I’ll even do it for half the original price. I have a personal score to settle with this man. Believe me, in one week, Jacob Johnson will be home in Springwood, as safe as he ever was.” Dan smiled as he stood up, shaking Creighton’s hand. “Thank you, Mr. Creighton. I look forward to seeing my grandson again. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a call to make.” As Dan headed to the kitchen, a smile crossed his face as he let out a low life. A laugh that wasn’t human. The laugh of Freddy Krueger. To Be Continued Andy picked himself up from the ground, finding he’d fallen a good six feet. He found he no way to climb up, so he’d have to follow the dark catacomb until he found a way out.
“Great, John has my flashlight,” Andy said to himself. “And the battery my cellphone probably doesn’t have enough of a charge to last me to the end of this labyrinth. Fucking Candy Crush,” Andy pulled out the gold shilling. “Well, you’ve kept me alive so far, let’s see if you can get me out of this mess.” Andy started making his way through the darkness while holding his backpack, pulling a bottle of absinthe out. “No, save it for after,” Andy told himself as he put the bottle back. “Don’t want to waste it on this place.” * “So, how exactly are we supposed to fight a supernaturally dead zombie mass murderer?” Jacob asked as he sat in the passenger’s side seat of the van. “We didn’t really bring any of the heavy artillery.” “We’ll stop off along the way,” Tommy said as the car pulled onto the freeway. “The major thing is to save as many people as we can. Hopefully, this kid that you said has a power that can stand up against him.” “I don’t know what kind of power he has,” Jacob told him. “I just know I felt it when I pulled him into my dream. But he hasn’t been back in the dream world since last night. Maybe Jason already got him.” “Hopefully we can put him down again, hopefully for keeps this time,” Tommy told him. “You sure you’re going to be okay?” “Yeah, why?” Jacob asked. “Why is everyone suddenly interested in my life? No one was this concerned when I was twelve and pissing my bed from the nightmares about Freddy. Or when I was comatose and stuck in the dreamworld for two years.” “I was just trying to scare you by showing you that I was scared,” Tommy told him. “Look… your mom trusted me to take care of you, to train you. And I barely got you out of town before you ended up getting impaled fighting The Shape. This whole looking after a kid thing wasn’t something I was expecting but… I should have treated this more seriously. I fucked you and Andy up royally.” “If you’d left me in Springwood with my grandparents, Freddy would have killed me within hours,” Jacob said as he stared out of the window. “You did save me. Look, I didn’t ask you to try to be my Dad, that would have never worked for anyone. And yeah, you did kind of just toss me to the wolves with no real training, but… I’m still alive. And between you and John, I’ve been learning a lot these last four years. I think I have a really good chance of beating Freddy someday.” “Someday?” “I’m not ready to go back there,” Jacob told him. “I still need to master these powers, and just how much I can do.” “You’re scared,” Tommy said. “So I am. I don’t want you going unless you’re ready. You, John, Andy… you’re my brothers now. If we face Freddy, we face him together as a team. When you say it’s time, then we’re all going. We’re going to kick Freddy’s ass as a unit. You get to call all the shots on that one, kid. So, you ready to fight Jason Voorhees?” “Yeah,” Jacob said as he tried to smile. “When we get closer to Jersey I’ll see if I find the kid through his dreams and see what’s going on. If anyone’s still alive, that is. Tommy… Jason’s probably already murdered a lot of people. Why’d you stop for the night instead of just going on?” “Because I’m trying to pay more attention to what you and Andy need,” Tommy said. “From now I’m going to be a better big brother. I’ve been treating you two like soldiers instead of actual kids. I’m going to better, I promise. Still not used to having to take care of people and keeping them alive for this long.” “Sounds like you need to pay attention to what you need, too,” Jacob said. “We’ll work on that.” * “So, what’s the point of having to go in circles?” Cody asked as he leaned back against the wall. “Why hasn’t he tried to kill us yet?” “You said you lost the one thing you needed to fight him,” John said. “What was it that you lost?” “A gold shilling,” Cody told him as he stared down at the ground. “Whoever has a piece of his gold is immune to his powers. He can’t kill you and or just take it from you. He tried to run me down with go-cart before, but it just went right through me.” “Is that he had those trees tear your clothes off? To get to the coin?” “Yeah,” Cody told him. “He could indirectly use his magic to get me even if he couldn’t hurt me. But the coin fell out of my pocket when they tore my pants off. That was the only way to save Bridget.” “No, you came up with a good plan to fight him,” John said. “It can still work.” “Andy’s got the backpack with the stuff in it,” Cody told him. “We have nothing to fight him with now. If he came for us now, we’d be sitting ducks.” “That’s good to know lad,” Lubdan laughed as he jumped out of nowhere. “Very good to know. Now give me the coin and I might let the girl go.” “And what about us?” Cody asked. “You die, no matter what,” Lubdan said he stepped toward the boys. “I went through a lot of trouble for that shilling and I’ll have it back, along with your blood.” “So there’s no way that I win in this scenario, right?” Cody asked. “You’re brighter than you look, lad,” Lubdan said. “Now be a good little boy and give a poor Leprechaun back his shilling. Maybe I’ll be kind and give you an easy death, maybe I’ll just snap your neck and be done with it.” “And if I tell you to go fuck yourself?” Cody asked. “Well, then I’ll have to torture you horribly until you do give it back,” Lubdan said. “An easy death or a painful death, that’s your option. Choose wisely, boy.” “How about we go for a third option?” John asked as he rammed an iron pipe through the monster’s head, only to find out it was only an illusion. “Nice effort,” Lubdan told him as his voice echoed around the chamber. “But futile. If you won’t give the coin, I’ll kill you and take it off or your dead bodies myself. I look forward to hearing your screams.” “I don’t have the coin, John,” Cody told him as he took him aside “We’re fucked.” “Andy has the coin!” John realized as he grabbed Cody by the shirt. “That’s the gold piece he found in the woods. He’s got the coin, he’s here somewhere, we just have to find him and—“ “Hope that that little green fucker doesn’t get him first,” Cody told him. “Come on, maybe we can catch him in the tunnel!” As the two started running, the real Lubdan cackled in the darkness as he teleported away. * The light on Andy’s phone started to fade as the last his cell phone battery died. “Fuck,” Andy said as the tapped his phone. “Now my phone’s dead and I can’t even call uber to bring me a pizza. Is that a light?” Andy found a small wooden door and kicked at it until it gave way, shattering a mess of splinters and dust. “When’s the last place this place got a remodel? The 1400’s?” Andy asked as he spotted Bridget chained to the wall. He quickly composed himself and dusted the debris off. “Of course, I knew that’s where the door led the entire time. Nope, not wandering around like an asshole for the last half hour.” “He’s going to come back any minute,” Bridget said. “Please, help me!” “I got it,” Andy said as he started to pick the lock. “Then we’ll get you out of here so we can kill that thing. I’m, uh, sorry about your Dad.” Bridget sniffled a little bit as Andy released her. “At least you’re showing some sympathy. I don’t know know if Cody would say the same thing. I told him to get rid of that coin. He never listens when I tell him something is a bad idea.” “He’s 18 and full of hormones,” Andy told her. “I’m scared for what I’m going to be like when puberty hits me.” “A sweet little thing like you?” Bridget asked as she kissed the top of his head. “Is Cody here?” “He’s probably lost in the tunnels,” Andy told her. “We should go find him before it’s—“ Lubdan suddenly teleported in front of the two as Bridget screamed. As he got closer, Lubdan smelled the air before a snarl came over his face. “You!” Lubdan shouted. “You have me missing shilling!” Andy pulled the coin out. “Well, fuck me, I guess I do!” * John and Cody continued walking as a crunching sound was heard in the tunnels. “Do you hear that?” John asked. “The horrifying sound that you only usually hear in horror movies?” Cody asked nervously. “Nope. Definitely did not hear that.” John turned around to shine his flashlight down the tunnel, seeing nothing as he brought the light back toward Cody. “I guess it really was nothing,” John told him. “Let’s go find An—“ A force grabbed John by his leg, pulling him face-first toward the ground and dragging him back toward the tunnel. Cody tried to grab his hand but found himself grabbed from behind and forced onto his back. Cody shined his flashlight into the face a rotting corpse that had been trapped into the tunnels for 1,000. Cody screamed as stared into the corpse’s face before he suddenly stopped. “Oh, hey, Mr. O’Day, ‘sup?” The corpse knocked the flashlight out of Cody’s hand and started strangling him. “Is this about me dating your descendant?” Cody squeaked out. Another snarling corpse dragged John through the tunnel as the young hunter tried to find something to grab onto to stop the dragging. He finally clung to the entrance the corpse continued to try to pull him. “Oh, fuck this,” John said as he pulled his foot out of his boot and kicked the corpse in the face to get it to drop him, giving John time to get to his feet and get a proper grip on the iron pipe before bashing the corpse’s head until it was completely caved in. “Take that, you dead fuck! Is that the best you got!” Which was when John looked up to see a dozen more corpses running toward him at full speed. “Son of a whore!” John shouted as he started running. John ended up back in the same corridor as Cody, finding the young man held down with William O’Day’s hands wrapped around his throat. “Hey! Get your hands off of him, you damn dirty corpse!” John shouted as he swung the iron pipe, knocking O’Day’s head off. “Cody, move your ass!” Cody got to his feet as the two found the exit blocked. “These are the people the last Leprechaun killed over the last 1,000 years,” Cody asked. “You’re the only one with a weapon, so what do we do? And… you’re missing a shoe, probably not a good idea to run around like that in a lair of evil.” “Find a weapon and improvise,” John told him. “We have to fight our way out of here.” “Right!” Cody said as he grabbed O’Day’s arm, ripping it out of the socket. “Thanks for the hand!” Cody immediately came back and smacked O’Day upside the head with his own hand before following John out of the door to join the fight. * “Alright, let’s negotiate,” Andy said as he and Lubdan circled each other. “You want the coin. I want to get the girl out of here alive. So, let’s talk.” “I’ll skin you the second you let go of the coin,” Lubdan told him. “Wow, you are really bad at negotiation,” Andy told him. “Let’s start over. You let us go and you get the coin. That’s it, negotiations are set.” “I’ll drink your blood and use your skull as a cereal bowl,” Lubdan told him. “Okay, still not understanding how this works,” Andy told him as he grabbed his backpack. “As long as I have the coin you can’t kill me, can you?” “No, but I can kill her!” Lubdan shouted as he used his powers to start force choking Bridget. “Give me the coin or the girl dies!” Andy just closed his eyes. “Fine, just let her live and… I won’t fight you. You can kill me as long as she gets to leave.” “No!” Bridget said. “I can’t leave you here!” “Yeah, you can,” Andy told her. “I’m used to people leaving me. I’ll be fine. The coin’s in the backpack.” Andy tossed the backpack to Lubdan which hit the ground with the bottle of absinthe rolling out. “What’s this, then?” Lubdan asked. “A victory drink, it is. I could use one of these!” “Come on, man!” Andy told him. “I worked hard to steal that!” “Sorry, lad, but finders keepers!” Lubdan said as he popped open the bottle and started drinking. “Such a fine drink, really hits the spot, and when I finish me drink, your throat I will cut!” “That barely rhymes!” Andy shouted. “You call yourself a Leprechaun?” As Lubdan drank, he pointed his fingers as Andy, causing his feet to sink into the dirt, trapping him in place. Bridget tried to pull him loose as Lubdan tossed the empty bottle to the ground as he turned to face him. “Now, me boy, I’ll force me coin from your cold dead hand!” Lubdan said as he started coughing as he stumbled. “What have you done!” At that point, Cody and John ran in just in time to see Lubdan’s body starting to bloat and expand. “I see he drank the absinthe,” Cody said. “Which I mixed with wrought iron shavings. I’d planned to trick into a drinking contest, but this works, too.” Andy grabbed Cody by the shirt, pulling him close. “You… poisoned my absinthe?” As Lubdan continued to expand, he spotted Cody and held out his hand. Cody’s wrist started to glow as he screamed in pain. “I curse you, Cody Ingalls, with the Curse of the Irish!” Lubdan shouted. “You’ll be forever hunted by me kin until the end of your days! You’ll never know a moment’s rest! You and your offspring are forever cursed!” Before Cody could reply, Lubdan exploded in a shower of blood and body parts, coating everyone in the room. At the same time, all the reanimated corpses fell to the ground, once again lifeless. “That was actually kind of cool to watch,” John said as he wiped the green blood from his face. “Bridget, are you okay!?” Cody asked in an excited rush as he ran to her, but she backed away. “What’s wrong?” “I can’t do this anymore,” Bridget told him. “Every time I tell you that something is a bad idea, you do it anyway. I told you to leave that coin behind! Now my father is dead! Ian warned me that someday you’d get someone hurt and now look around you.” “Well, Ian’s point is kind of negated by the fact that he stuck his face in a fan,” Cody told her. “Plus he was kind of a dick to boot. Just let me get you home and we’ll talk this out. I love you.” “I love you, too,” Bridget told him. “I just can’t be with you anymore. I’m sorry, Cody, but we’re over.” Before Cody could stop her, Bridget ran out of the lair. John put a hand on his shoulder to comfort the young man. “I’m sorry, Cody,” John told her. “My girlfriend left me, too.” “Then she got killed by Michael Myers,” Andy added. “Brutally because John wasn’t there to save her.” “Thank you, Andy,” John said through gritted teeth. “You’re a real help. Anyway, Cody, we should really talk about your little legal problem and maybe joining our—“ “Nothing matters anymore,” Cody told him as he headed for the door. “No Bridget, no hope for the future, my best friends are dead… what’s the use? I might as well just turn myself in.” Cody left the lair as Andy and John followed, only to find themselves surrounded by police cars, but all the officers were passed out all around. “What the fuck?” John asked. * In New Jersey, Jacob yawned as Tommy helped him stand up. “You going to be okay?” “I used all my energy to make all of the cops fall asleep,” Jacob told him. “Luckily they were all into a long shift and were susceptible to hypnotic suggestions through their subconscious. Yeah, I figured out how to do that through my dreams.” Tommy realized Jacob’s nose was bleeding heavily and gave him a tissue. “I wouldn’t tap into that kind of power unless you absolutely have to. There’s no telling what kind of a drain it’ll have on you if you use it again anytime soon. Just stick to your normal powers until we know more about what you can do, alright?” * “You can do a lot of good in the world,” John told Cody as they sat in an alley. “You figured out how to kill that thing. We’d have never thought to get him to drink iron shavings to kill him.” “Plus you swung that arm like a pro,” Andy told him. “We could use you a guy like you.” “Not like I have anything left in this town,” Cody said. “Been losing in this place since I was 8. First I found out my parents were killed by the Lakeshore Strangler, then—“ Andy immediately hugged him. “Say no more, dude. You’re one of us now, whether you want to be or not.” “Andy’s right, it’s destiny,” John told him. “Trust me on this. We’ll explain everything once we find a place to clean up. And don’t worry, we’ll find a way to clear your name in this town, but first we need to get the hell out of here.” * Two Days Later “Fuck you guys so hard,” Andy said as he walked through the door of the team’s home in the woods. “Leaving us trying to find a way to stay hidden for two fucking days while you take a pleasure trip to New Jersey?” “That the new kid?” John asked as he saw Max huddled on the couch, staying silent. “Yeah,” Tommy told him. “Hasn’t really opened up yet.” “Gee, I wonder why anyone who hole themselves off after having your life destroyed?” Cody asked as he sat on the couch next to Max. “So, who’d you lose to end up in the Happiness Hotel?” “My brother, my friends and… my boyfriend,” Max whispered. “You’re gay?” Cody asked as he sat up and paid attention. “Yeah, so?” “Well, it’s just that… gay guys usually date other gay guys and never go after girls and… I had some problems with a former best friend constantly trying to steal my girlfriend and seeing you’d never go after a potential girlfriend… Fuck it, you’re my new best friend!” Cody said as he raised Max up to hug him. “Uh… okay,” Max told him. “What just happened?” “I’m going to take a nap,” Jacob said as he headed upstairs. “I’m going to get a drink,” Andy said as he headed to the liquor cabinet. “I’m going to check the pot garden, I could use some relaxation,” John said. “HOLD IT!” Tommy shouted at the group. “Everyone get back here, I learned something over this last week. I haven’t been the best guardian to these kids, and that’s my fault. I haven’t tried to be the responsible adult I should be. So, no more sleeping during the day unless we’re out for a hunt; no more alcohol, and no more pot. Sydney was right, she realized that we’re a not a real working unit and we’re going to fix that. We have to lives to save, and while we’ve been doing decent, we can do better. So, starting tomorrow we’re putting everything we have into fixing this unit. Soon we may have to face Freddy, Michael, Chucky and possibly Jason on top of some real heavy hitters. I want to be ready, so from now on we’re one team, one soul, one goal!” “Yeah, okay,” John told him. “I’ll give it a shot.” “I know I’m the new guy here and my opinion probably doesn’t mean dick, but I’m in,” Cody told him. “Okay,” Max whispered as he looked up at them. “Let’s do this,” Jacob said. Andy just looked around. “Now when you say ‘no alcohol’…” “Alright, Nightmare Warriors,” Tommy told the group. “Let’s go save the world.” NEXT… Jacob’s Insidious Quest! "I can't believe we left John and Andy behind," Jacob said while sitting in the passenger side seat of the van as it headed down the highway. "What if they got caught?"
"They've fought monsters solo before," Tommy told him as he focused on the road. "They'll be fine. We can't babysit them all the time." "I'm worried about Andy," Jacob told him. "His drinking's getting worse. How long before he decides to go find the Cult of Thorn to rescue Danny himself? I know his mother's out there and leaving him messages, but—" "I've been faking the messages from her," Tommy said. "To keep his hopes up. Honestly, I have no idea if her or Laurie are still out there. I'm worried about him, too. But I don't know how to deal with this kind of thing, I just wanted to save people from these monsters." "How can we save people if you can't even save your team?" Jacob asked as he stared out the window. "Andy acts like a dick sometimes, but... he's kind of like my little brother now. I don't want to see him drink himself to death or worse." Tommy sighed as he looked over to the teenager. "Okay, we'll try to get him through this, for real this time. You're right, I've just been letting this slide because of what he's been through. Then after that, we can deal with your masturbation problem." "Problem? What problem? I don't have a problem," Jacob told him. "You keep two boxes of tissue paper in the van and one in Andy's backpack." "...Think I should start bringing more?" * "Achoo!" Andy sneezed into a tissue, having it pulled out of his backpack. "Good thing Jacob is paranoid about getting sick. Why else would he bring a ton of kleenex with him?" "Right, puberty hasn't really set in for you yet," John told him. While Andy knew of Jacob's ability to pleasure himself to many things, he hadn't made certain connections yet. "There's a small scrapyard over there. There should be some wrought iron to use as a weapon." "Think we can beat thing without Tommy?" Andy asked as the climbed the fence. "You probably could, you beat Chucky a few times," John told him. "Not on my own, I had my mother, and Kyle, and a police officer to do the heavy work," Andy told him. "I only lit him on fire and melted him." "More than I did," John said. "I never got to take Michael on by myself. I never believed he even existed until the night he killed my friends and my Mom got sent away. I don't even know if I'm strong enough to stand up to him when he comes back." Andy took his hand and held it. "Don't think I'm going soft, but... you don't have to face him alone. I'll help you. I have a score to settle with him, too. He killed my father." "Okay, we'll do this as a team, partner," John said as he picked up a pipe. "Ever play baseball, Andy?" "I always wanted to," Andy told him and found a tire iron. "My Mom was going to sign me up for softball in the spring. Then Chucky happened." "We'll take in a game some night," John told him. "See if you like it." "If we survive," Andy told him. "Think our Moms are okay?" "They're tough," John said. "They're survivors, like us." "The Cult guys said the same thing," Andy told him. "That I'm a survivor. They said that made me special, but I never got what they meant." "The Cult guys are fucked up, and we're going to deliver a world of hurt very soon," John promised. "But for right now, we got a Leprechaun to fuck up." * Cody raced down the street, having conned a guy his size out of his outfit, although the guy's shoes didn't fit so he was still barefoot until he could find a comfortable pair of shoes. After a quick stop to get a very special weapon, Cody raced towards Bridget's house. "Don't worry, Bridget, I'm coming," Cody said to himself. "I'm not losing anyone else. I know how to kill this guy, I just have to get close enough." * It was well after 3 A.M. as Bridget came downstairs, unable to sleep. She headed to the kitchen to make a cup of hot chocolate, thinking about Cody the whole time. "I told him to get rid of that coin," Bridget thought to herself. "Why didn't he listen to me? He's only going to cause trouble for himself. Why can't Cody ever just listen when someone tells him not to do something?" Bridget headed toward the living room upon seeing the glow of the tv. Her father sat on the couch while a late-night movie played. "You couldn't sleep either, could you?" Bridget asked as she sat down, putting her mug of hot chocolate on the table. "Daddy, I know you don't like Cody but he's not a murderer. He was set up. I just wish you'd give him a chance." "Why would I give him a chance?" Bridget's father asked in an Irish brogue. "After all, the lad is a thieving scoundrel. In fact, he deserves the death penalty for stealing that poor Leprechaun's shilling." "Why are you talking like that?" Bridget asked as she noticed her father wasn't facing her when he talked. That's when she realized that a hand was sticking through the back of his head, working him like a puppet. Bridget screamed as Lubdan appeared in front of her. He looked down at the coffee table and picked up the mug of hot chocolate, sipping it before spitting it out. "You could at least offer a guest a nice cup of tea!" Lubdan shouted as he ran toward her. "I want me gold!" An iron pipe hit Lubdan upside the head before whacking him in the chest and once again in the head. Lubdan fell backward through the glass coffee table, shattering it on impact. "Come on," John said as he extended his hand. "Little fucker won't stay down long." "He— he killed my father!" Bridget screamed. "We don't have time for this," John said as he looked down at the shattered table, just in time to realize that Ludban had disappeared. "Crap." Lubdan suddenly appeared behind John, biting into his leg and drawing blood. He fell back as he reached for the iron pipe to defend himself. As Ludban closed in on John, a tire iron flew across the room, sticking through the side of Lubdan's head, burning him. He pulled it out and saw Andy standing across the room. "You think you can harm me, boy?" Lubdan asked as he used his magic to levitate the iron. "Let's play boomerang!" The tire iron flew through the air, but before Andy could react, it knocked through the plate glass window and into the yard outside. "Andy!" John shouted. "Doubt a wee lad that size could survive that," Lubdan told him as he grabbed Bridget's arm. "But he's not the boy I'm looking for." Cody ran in with an iron crowbar as Ludban pulled Bridget toward the kitchen door. "Let her go you little green bastard!" "Now, that's no way to talk about me parentage," Lubdan told him. "If you want the lass back, bring me shilling to me brother's tomb at dawn!" Before Cody could reach them, Lubdan faded away with Bridget in his grasp, laughing the whole time. "No!" Cody shouted. "I was too late!" John pulled himself to his feet and limped toward the window to see if Andy was actually dead. As he got to the window, Andy suddenly popped up, scaring John. "That didn't hurt nearly as much as you'd think," Andy told him as he spotted Cody. "There's the guy we've been looking for!" "I gotta save Bridget," Cody told them as he rushed upstairs to find the shoes he left behind hours earlier. He raced down the stairs while pulling them on while Andy was patching John up. "How are you alive?" John asked. "That was a plate glass window. You should have died from a multitude of injuries." "Maybe there is something to me being a survivor like The Cult said," Andy told him as he tossed the tire iron at Cody's leg, tripping him as he headed to the door. "Not so fast there, Skippy. You're not going alone just so that thing can kill you." "You don't get it, I lost the one thing that can protect me and now he has my girlfriend," Cody told them. "I have no choice. I'd die for her, I'll do anything to get her home safe." "Then we'll find a way," John told him. "We just have to put our heads together. You know all the ways to kill this thing, right? Let's nail him and get your girlfriend back." "I did have one idea, it's a long shot, but it worked before," Cody told him. "The problem is that someone has to challenge him to a drinking contest as a distraction." "Right here," Andy said as he volunteered. Cody just stared blankly at him. "What? You think I can't handle my liquor? I can drink anyone under the table." "He can," John assured him. "Probably all the eggs he eats. Seriously, google it. Eggs help with hangovers." "I do love eggs," Andy smiled. "And I gotta pee like a racehorse. I'll be right back. Nobody touch my absinthe." As soon as Andy was gone, Cody spotted the bottle. "That'll do. We have less than three hours to come up with the plan to take this little Irish bastard out and rescue my girlfriend." "What are you doing?" John asked. "It's part of the plan," Cody said as he opened the bottle. "Trust me." Minutes later, Andy and returned and looked toward the couch at Bridget's dead father. "Uhhhh... should we call someone to get him?" * In a small motel in Indiana, Tommy sat on a bed as Jacob walked out of the bathroom while holding a box of kleenex. "Are you alright?" Tommy asked. "I could have driven another few hours without sleep. What was the rush of pulling over for some sleep?" "A cat nap wasn't enough," Jacob told him as he sat down on his own bed. "I wanted a few extra hours without distraction." "What's really going on?" Tommy asked. "You've been awfully insistent on sleeping a full eight hours lately. It used to be that you were scared to sleep the whole night. Are you still trying to The Beautiful Dream?" "No," Jacob said as he fell back onto the covers. "I've come to terms with the fact that my parents can't— or won't— see me. Maybe they'll see me someday, I just gotta be patient. I just... found a reason to spend time in the Dream World is all." "Who is she?" Tommy asked with a raised eyebrow. "I know you get... excited every time you get a letter from San Francisco. You got a sweetie in California that's literally your dream girl?" "I don't want to talk about it," Jacob told him. "I want to keep some things personal." "Fair enough," Tommy told him. "If you ever want to visit your girl, just say the word. We'll make the trip for you to meet up." "Thanks," Jacob told him. "But we don't want to meet face to face. It'd probably kill the mystery." "A little mystery can be fun," Tommy said. "Okay, get your rest because we'll hit the road in a few hours. I want to be in Jersey this afternoon. Who knows how many bodies Jason's racked up by now." * In the Leprechaun's lair hidden in a tree in the park, Bridget found herself chained by the wrists as Lubdan made sure all of his gold was right where he left it. "Let me go!" Bridget shouted. "I didn't steal your stupid gold!" "No, but the lad stole me shilling, and he'll come for you, he will. Of that I'm certain, and when he does, this lair will be his tomb, just like me bastard brother," Lubdan told her. "If you hated your brother so much, why do you care if he's dead?" "It's a family thing," Lubdan informed her. "I hated me brother with all me heart, but he was still family. If anything, he should have died by my hand and my hand alone. I'll avenge me brother and hang the hide of the boy who killed him as a trophy." "So, you're not going to try to marry me?" "Of course not, lass, me birthday isn't for another hundred years," Lubdan told her. "And by then you'll be old and saggy. When it's time for me to wed, I'll choose someone a bit younger and firm. Not that you'll live that long at any rate. Once the boy is dead, you'll be joining him. You and whoever else interferes with me getting the shilling back." "Cody killed your brother, what makes you think he won't kill you?" Bridget asked. "This time he won't get the chance," Lubdan told her. "Once he enters my Labyrinth, he'll find a much different experience than he did the last time. Even having the shilling in his possession won't be able to save him this time." * Cody, John, and Andy arrived at the park an hour before dawn with their supplies in their backpacks. "Once we get inside, he's going to pull out every trick in the book to throw us off," Cody told them. "Under no circumstance can we get separated. And we'll need a code phrase to recognize each other if we do because he can take other forms. That's how I got tricked into making out him." "Gross, you made out with a Leprechaun?" Andy asked. "Yeah, and he used way too much tongue," Cody told him as he headed forward. "Just remember, he's going to trick you any way he can. If we get separated, just say 'Morty sent me' so we know who's real, got it?" "Got it," John said as he followed behind while Andy stopped to tie his shoe. "Fucking laces," Andy muttered. "Gotta start wearing boots. Guys, wait up!" As Andy rushed through the tree trunk entrance, he tripped on the other lace and fell forward, landing on his face. The floor gave way as Andy fell into a cavern, sending dust flying up. "I need a drink right now." * "Which way do we go?" John asked as he pulled out a flashlight. "This way," Cody told him. "Once we get far enough we'll be trapped. The place will go around in a circle until we kill this thing. So we need to stick close until we find Bridget. He better not have hurt her." "You really love her, don't you?" "She was the first girl I ever liked," Cody admitted. "Spent years doing everything to get her to like me. I finally asked her what I had to do to get her to like me. She said I just had to be myself, I didn't need flashy card tricks or schemes. I just had to stop trying to impress her and treat her like a regular person. If we survive this, I want to clear my name and get her as far away from this place as possible." "Then you might want to consider not killing this bastard right away," John told him. "I have the iron chains in my backpack. If we can subdue him we can drag him to the police so you can take your girl home. Unfortunately pulling that off is the real trick." "Nearly did it before," Cody told him. "Until my guardian got greedy and got himself killed. Trapped him in an iron safe. Hey, the kid awfully quiet." "Yeah, Andy's only quiet when he's drinking from a bottle," John said as he looked around. "... Shit. We gotta find him." The two started running back toward the entrance, only to end up right back they were minutes ago. "It's started," Cody told him. "We can't go back now, we either have to wait for Andy or just continue on without him." "Dammit," John said. "Let's keep going, maybe he'll find us." As the two walked along, several eyes started glowing while embedded in the wall... * Meanwhile, at Bridget's house, the police had arrived, finding her dead father on the couch. "Jesus, it looks like something just punched right through the back of his head," the officer said. "Think it was our guy?" "Who else?" the other officer said. "We just got word. Witnesses say our murderer was spotted near the park with another man and a little boy." "Get every officer on hand to the park," the officer told him. "Find out exactly where he is in there. Orders are shoot to kill. This killer's reign of terror ends tonight." 10 Years Earlier
Cody Ingalls stared at the two officers towering over him in the doorway. “My neighbor has been checking on me every few hours until my parents get back,” 8-year-old Cody told the officers. “They’re on a business trip and I’m allergic to my neighbor’s pets so I can’t stay there or else I’ll die.” “Son, we have some bad news,” the officer said as he met Cody at eye level. “Your parents were found dead in a park yesterday morning. They were strangled to death.” “No,” Cody said nervously as he backed up. “They’re coming home in the morning. They promised. They’re not dead.” “We need to take you somewhere until we find a new home for you,” the other officer said. “You’ll have to come with us now and—“ “NOOO!” Cody shouted as he punched the officer in the groin and slugging the other one. Before either officer could catch him, Cody was on the fire escape, making his way toward the street where he started running as fast as he could. “They’re not dead, they’ll see, they’ll be home soon and—“ Cody instantly hit an older man and fell backward. “Hey, kid, watch where you’re going,” Morty said as the officers caught up to him. “Uh oh, what’d you do, knock over a bank?” “Sorry, sir, we’ll take the boy now,” the officer said. “May need to handcuff him.” “What’d the kid do?” Morty asked, seeing the fear in the kid’s eyes. “He’s orphaned, we can’t let him stay by himself,” the other officer said. “He’ll go into foster care.” “Foster care? This kid’s my nephew, he can stay with me.” “Why was he in a neighbor’s care instead of yours?” “Me and my brother ain’t on good terms. Guy owed me money and I think we kind of a drunk. But the kid’s good with me, I’ll sign whatever.” The two officers looked at each other. It beat dealing with the loads of paperwork that they’d have to sign. After a few minutes, they just shrugged and walked away. “You got a name, kid?” Morty asked. “Cody, sir.” “Well, Cody Sir,” Morty told him. “Looks like I’m stuck with you, and just in time because I have got big plans that are going to make us a ton of money. You good with a card deck?” “No, sir.” “Then I have a lot to teach you, my young friend.” Nightmare Warriors #2 “The Scaring of the Green, Part Two” "Well, this isn't what I was expecting to happen," Jacob said as he watched Jason Voorhees stomping toward him with a machete. "Although given the last 4 years, I probably should have expected this." "What the hell is that!?" Cody asked as he got to his feet. He thought he'd been finished with the strange and unusual events such as Leprechauns and monsters after recent events. "Jason Voorhees, the Crystal Lake killer," Jacob explained. "You gotta wake up, pal. Then wait for my friends, they can help you." "But this is a dream, right?" Cody asked. "He can't hurt us, can he?" Jason swung his machete, slashing Jacob's shirt. Luckily his dreams had protected him with only his shirt having taken the damage. "Oh, shit!" Cody shouted as Jacob focused his power and punched Jason backward through a tree. He used his other hand to put his palm on Cody's forehead. "Trust my friends when they find you, they can help you." * Cody woke up under the tree, gasping as he felt his body to make sure he was in one piece. "Okay, I'm alive," Cody sighed as he stood up. He felt around his pocket for the gold coin, starting at it in between his fingers. "Stupid fucking coin. I should toss you in the lake and be done with you for all this rotten luck." "Now why would you be doing that?" Lubdan the Leprechaun asked as he sat on a tree branch over Cody's head. "Be a nice little lad and give an old Leprechaun his treasure back." "No, you're dead! I killed you!" Cody asked as he backed up, tripping backward on a tree branch. He fell backward, hitting his head on the ground. "Ah, so it was you that sent me brother to Hell," Lubdan said as he jumped off the branch and landed feet first in the grass. "You murdered me kin; now I'll peel off your skin!" "You can't hurt me while I have the coin," Cody told him. "You can't lay a finger on me!" "True, but they can!" Lubdan said as the trees around the area started reaching for Cody with their branches and vines. "I'll have me coin, or they'll have your blood!" "You gotta get me first!" Cody shouted as he started running, only to be tripped by one of the vines. "Bring me the coin!" Lubdan shouted as the vines of the tree held him down before they snuck up through his pant legs and shirt, the thorns cutting through them. The fabric started tearing apart as Cody's clothes were ripped like tissue paper, soon tossing the remnants of his shirt and pants away while Cody struggled. "You should have given up the coin while you had the chance, now I'll kill you and take it anyw--" A shotgun blast hit Lubdan, sending him flying backward just the trees were about to finish ripping off the rest of Cody's clothing to get the coin. Tommy stood not too far away with his sawed-off shotgun. John had his pistol, Andy had his sword and Jacob had a mace. "The kid was right, it is a Leprechaun!" Tommy shouted as he fired off several more rounds at Lubdan as he tried to get up. The Leprechaun stumbled, falling back into the bushes with the final shot. "Get Cody!" Andy and Jacob started chopping the tree limbs, only for Cody to start running once he was free, not looking back for an instant. "Well, that's gratitude for you," Andy said. "What do you expect, those trees were going full Evil Dead on him," Jacob told him. “We gotta find him." "John and Andy, you two follow the kid," Tommy told them. "Jacob, where did you see Jason in your dream?" "Right over there," Jacob said. "It felt so real." "That means he's awake," Tommy realized. "The water that you saw. It had to have been the lake he's under right now. If he's awake, a lot of people are going to die if we can't put him back." "There was something else," Jacob told him. "It was brief, but there were, I don't know, flashes of something. A kid in a red ball cap. He felt somehow different like he's important." "Think he's got powers like that psychic girl Tina?" "I don't know, but I know he's got some kind of ability," Jacob told him. "If he falls asleep I may be able to get more info. I need to change my shirt and try to find this guy." "You work on that, I'll go find John and Andy," Tommy told him. "Good luck." As Tommy ran off, Jacob looked at his torn shirt. "I don't even think I have another shirt. Hope my other one's dry." * Cody exited the woods with only his boxers left, now worrying about the Leprechaun's return. "This can't be real," Cody said. "I must have hit my head. There are no Leprechauns, no men in hockey masks, no killer trees, and no weird kids showing up in my dreams. I'm going to wake up any minute now, fully clothed and my girlfriend waiting for me. Wait... Bridget! I have to get to her." * "How are you holding up, kid?" John asked as Andy chopped through the brush with his sword. "You had three beers along the way." "I would have had more if Jacob hadn't shaken me down and tossed the rest of my stash out the window," Andy told him. "I could have used the rush since we're fighting a Leprechaun." "Maybe Tommy got him," John said as he stopped. "You know, we've been a group for a year. You know you can... talk to us, right?" "Tommy only talks 'the mission', Jacob only wants to jerk off to... well, stuff. And you? You're still waiting for your mom to tell you when to take a piss. Been holding it in for a year, haven't you?" "Wow, you are a mean little drunk," John told him. "I know you got a raw deal with the Cult and your little friend--" "Little friend?" Andy asked. "I was content with being stalked by a killer doll. I was even starting to accept that I might never see my Mom again. But then the Cult kidnapped me and Danny. And they tortured me, they made me believe that I could only be loyal to Danny. That I'd die for Danny and fuck everyone else. And you know what? It worked. I haven't seen Danny in a year and he's still the only thing I can think about. He's my best friend and the thought of him being stuck in that cult... Drinking him out of my head is all I can do so I can kill monsters and save the world. I don't know what else there is. They put him in my head, John. They forced him in and now he’s all that’s there and I can’t get him out.” "Then let us help you," John told him. "We're a team. We can get you through this if you let us in." "What, you mean like one of those Lifetime movies?" Andy asked as he flipped a gold coin in his hand. "Fuck that. Let's go find this kid before he gets himself killed. My buzz is wearing off and I need something.” “What the hell is that?” John asked. “I found this back there when Cody ran off,” Andy told him. “It was just laying on the ground. Probably fake, but I think it needs neat.” “Hang on to it, we’ll get it appraised when this is all over,” John said as he kept moving forward. * Tommy found the old apartment that Cody shared with his guardian Morty. There were empty pizza boxes all over and empty alcohol bottles in the sink. Tommy eventually found Cody’s bedroom, a small bedroom with barely enough room for a bed and dresser, along with a small black and white television set. “Better pack the kid some clothes, I doubt he’s ever coming back here,” Tommy said as he found the book on Leprechaun lore laying on the ground. “Well, what do we have here?” * Lubdan stood on the sidewalk, using magic to levitate a stick with a piece of red fabric attached at the end. “Me brother had been intending to get married. With this piece of his bride’s wedding dress, I can find the lass. The boy must be her white knight, so if I take her as me hostage, the boy will give up the shilling to save her,” Lubdan reasoned as the stick stopped spinning, pointing to the nearest street. “She’s in that direction! Soon I’ll avenge the brother who should have died by me own hand.” As Lubdan started walking, he passed a yard where a tied-up dog sniffed at him. “Poor little beast,” Lubdan said. “I may be evil, but even I think animals should be free. You look starved, boy.” A cooked turkey appeared in front of the dog, who got closer to it. Seconds later, his owner appeared and grabbed Lubdan’s arm. “You get away from my dog!” the man shouted. “He doesn’t need to eat, I fed him last night!” “The poor beast is starving, I was merely helping one of nature’s creatures,” Lubdan said as he pulled away, sizing the man up. “How about I kick your little ass and teach you a lesson?” the man asked as he punched Lubdan, sending him to the ground. “Get up so I can do that again!” Lubdan stood up, dusting his top hat off as he stared at the man. “Perhaps I’ll give the creature another treat. How about a large meal for a starving dog?” As the man went to punch him again, Lubdan pointed his finger as the man’s stomach started rumbling. “What did you do!?” the man shouted as he fell to his knees. The dog’s leash disappeared as it sniffed the air. As the man started feeling weird, a brown liquid started coming from his eyes, nose, and ears. The dog growled as it pounced the man as it started biting into his flesh, eating the meat inside. The man’s organs were now comprised of cooked turkey, coated with gravy as the dog bit larger chunks out of the man. Soon, more dogs came running as the man screamed while Lubdan stood back, laughing. “Sorry lad, but it’s a dog eat dog world!” Lubdan laughed. * Cody found himself in an alley, tired and out of breath as he backed against a wall, sliding down until he sat on the ground. A light rain started as he stared up into the sky. “I’ve lost everything,” Cody said to no one. “My family, my clothes, my girlfriend, my freedom… why is this happening to me? All because I held onto some stupid piece of—“ Cody felt his nearly naked body, realizing that the coin was no longer with him. It had been in his pants pocket when the trees ripped his clothes from him. “Shit!” Cody shouted. “I’m defenseless!” “No, you’re not kid,” a voice said as Cody looked around. “Morty, is that you? Where are you?” “I managed to strike a deal to come talk to you, but just this once, kid. Now I taught you better than that, didn’t I? When I took you in, you were in just a bad situation. Starving, alone, not a person in the world willing to give you the time of the day. I clothed you, fed you, and taught you to survive. Have you forgotten everything I taught you?” “No, but this thing is powerful and I—“ “AIn’t a creature in this world that can’t be conned,” Morty told him. “Hell, how many times did we con that little Irish bastard before he killed me? If I hadn’t gotten greedy, we would have had him right there in that iron safe.” “You’re right,” Cody told him. “Give him the con of a lifetime. Thanks, Morty.” “You’re a survivor, Cody, you’re going to run this town someday,” Morty told him. “Now get your life back and stop taking shit from that little green asshole. You’re my boy, you know how to work the system. Now go get ‘em!” Cody smiled as he stared up at the sky. “I’m going to need some clothes. Don’t worry, Bridget, I’ll kill this thing again.” * Jacob returned to the van, pulling off his slashed shirt as he dug around for his other shirt, hoping it had been dried by this point. As he pulled the shirt on, he felt a force hitting him. The kid from his dream was getting drowsy. “He’s asleep, and he’s going to be having a nightmare,” Jacob said as he sat down and focused. “I need to get him somewhere he can feel safe. That little diner up the street should do.” * Minutes later, Max fell through the diner door, spitting out water as he got to his knees. As he slowly stood up, he realized that he was standing in a diner he'd never been to before. "MAX! Hey, buddy!" Jacob shouted. "Get your ass over here, you have got to try this apple pie!" Max slowly approached him, water dripping with each step he took. That's when Max noticed that no one in the diner even took notice of him, as if he were invisible. "It's my first time here, too. You're kind of across the country and I can't hold this connection too long, so let's cut to the chase," Jacob said. "I know you're spooked right now, but trust me, I'm a friend." "Where did you come from?" Max asked as he tried to move out of the booth, realizing the floor beneath his feet was cold. He looked down, seeing his shoes and socks were gone, as he'd taken them off to dry next to the fire the night before. But if they were at the cabin, how did he get to the city?" “What the hell is going on?" "It's going to be okay, Max," Jacob told him. "You just haven't figured out what you can do yet. Just remember to keep calm and focus on where you to want to go." "Who are you? How did I get... where the hell am I?" "As I said, I'm a friend, one you're going to meet real soon," Jacob told him. "Just remember that you can do this. It's going to get rough, and a lot of people are probably going to die, you just gotta be brave. We all had to be brave before he brought us together. Face your fear, Max, it's the only way to beat him." "Beat who?" Max asked. The boy just smiled as Max woke up on the couch at Will's house in Higgins Haven. Meanwhile, Jacob woke up in the van and took a deep breath. “That kid’s got power,” Jacob smiled. “I felt it this time. It has something to do with that hat. I gotta find the others.” * “You sure the kid’s going to come here?” John asked as Tommy tossed him a bag with Cody’s clothes. “I saw a picture of him with his girlfriend,” Tommy told him. “He’ll try to save her from this thing now that he knows it’s back. We find the kid and we kill this fucker once and for all. We need to find some wrought iron, that’s the best way to either contain it or kill it according to the book I found.” “According to the GPS, she lives in that house over there,” Andy said. “Think the kid’s okay?” “He’s running around nearly naked with a Leprechaun hunting for him, things could be worse for him,” John told him as Tommy’s cell phone started ringing. “Tommy, I got in contact with the kid,” Jacob told him. “He’s special, he has some kind of power. I think we could use him if we can get to him first.” “Hang tight, Jake, I’m on my way,” Tommy said as he looked at John. “Find anything iron-based to fight the Leprechaun if you need to. I have to go take care of something.” “Where are you going?” Andy shouted after Tommy as he ran off. “Well, that’s just great. So now what?” “We find some iron,” John told him as he started walking. Andy just sighed as he pulled out a flask and took a long drink. As Andy followed John up the street, Lubdan appeared just outside of Bridget’s house… TO BE CONTINUED… As a boy, Tommy Jarvis witnessed Jason Voorhees destroy his entire world. As an adult, Tommy vowed to destroy Jason if he ever came back, but realized he'd need help.
His first recruit: Jacob Johnson, the Dream Master, who trained for two years with the Dream Warriors themselves. Jacob is still learning to master his powers, but will soon be ready to take on Freddy Krueger. Next was John Strode, whose mother Laurie had been stalked by Michael Meyers for decades. Having killed John's friends, Michael started stalking John to kill him before trying to find Laurie. Finally, the group found Andy Barclay. Terrorized by the serial killer Charles Lee Ray, who had possessed a doll named Chucky to continue his killing. After a two year kidnapping by the Cult of Thorn, Andy had to find a new strength or risk his mind being broken. Together the quartet vowed to save as many lives as they can while putting a stop to the evil that plagues humanity. * One Year Later On an ethereal plane on another level of existence, not heaven, not hell, but somewhere that could be anywhere or everywhere, a dark haired boy sat on the floor of what looked like a child's bedroom. As he sat there, he threw down one playing card after another as he played a very long game of solitaire. Soon, a blonde haired boy slowly walked in with a pained expression on his face. The dark haired boy could only smile as he focused on his game of cards. Even though both looked to be no older than 12, the two brothers had been alive an eternity. But that's another story for another time. "Welcome back, brother," the boy said, barely able to contain his laughter. His voice didn't sound like what you'd expect to hear from a child. It was more adult, like the kind of voice you'd hear coming out of Jeff Goldblum's mouth. "How long has it been? Twenty, twenty-two years? Did something go wrong?" "I was murdered," the blonde boy whispered as he sat on the floor where the two once again began playing an age old card game of War. His voice did sound like a child's, innocent and loving. "By an evil as powerful as yours." "Come now, brother," the dark-haired boy said. "You know nothing is more evil than me. And I saw your death. There is television here, you know. But it's not the dying part that makes you upset, is it?" "I-- I fell in love," the blonde boy whispered. "And it got taken away. I have to get back to Earth. I have to find him. I have to make sure he's okay." "You know the rules better than that," the dark haired boy told him. "We have to play for the chance. We have to play for a human body to inhabit." "I'll win, brother, I always do." "Ah, but now you have something at stake," the dark haired boy said with a sinister smirk. "And this time, when I win, the first thing I will do when I emerge on Earth will be to find your precious Max... and rip out his internal organs one. By. One. And when his heart is the only thing that's left, I'll devour it. And you can watch from right here as I kill your beloved." * Somewhere on Earth Max Madison gasped for air as he shot straight up, finding himself sitting in a darkened bedroom. He started taking deep breaths as he felt his chest, finding his wounds cleaned and covered in gauze, as well as his left leg patched up where a machete had been stabbed through it. Feeling the top of his head, he realized his lucky cap wasn't there. Instead he saw it on the bed post at the edge of the mattress. "Grady?" Max asked as he threw the blanket off, putting his feet on the floor. As he tried to stand he found himself nearly collapsing under the weight on his injured leg. He fell backward, staring up the ceiling. "Will? Anyone?" The door opened as Jacob Johnson walked in, turning on the light. "Your friends are dead, dude. Sorry, best to rip that bandage right off. You were the only survivor of Jason's latest massacre." "Please, no," Max said as the tears started falling. "I should be dead, too." "Get it together, bud," Jacob told him as he sat down on the bed next to Max. "You survived for a reason. Now suck it up, you need to rest so you can heal. There's work to do." "What the hell are you talking about?" Max asked. "I have to bury my brother. I have to bury my friends. I have to bury my boyf-- my friend." Jacob seethed as he looked away. "Yeah... about that." From downstairs, Tommy Jarvis was cleaning his guy when he heard Max's voice screaming. "YOU BURNED THEIR BODIES!?!" * "I had to sedate him," Jacob said as he sat on the chair downstairs. "He'll be okay when he wakes up and understands we had to make sure they weren't coming back as zombies. Didn't want that happening again." "I love how we've had to start taking precautions to keep the dead from rising," Tommy told him. "First it was guys like Jason, now it's ordinary dead people." "So, are we heading back to L.A. to get Andy and John? It's been two days." Jacob asked. "We can't leave Max here alone," Tommy told him. "I'll go make sure they're okay. If Max wakes up, give him the tour, let him know what the deal is with Jason. Just try to keep him calm. I'll be back with the guys and hopefully the new kid in a day or so." * Cody Ingalls, Andy Barclay and John Strode sat on the curb, all three of them covered head to toe in green and red blood. "I think we deserve a drink after this," Andy told them. "And maybe a shower. In that order." "Well, at least we're all alive," John said, trying to improve Cody's mood. "That counts for something, right?" "My girlfriend told me to go fuck myself," Cody told them. "I loved Bridgit. I killed two Leprechauns for her." "Relax, more are coming for you," Andy said as he patted Cody on the back. "You're cursed now, remember? You'll have Leprechauns hunting you until the day you die. Neat, huh?" "I fucking hate you guys," Cody told them as he sat there. "Seriously fucking hate." "Taking it better than I thought he would." John told Andy. * Four Days Earlier A young girl ran through the woods late at night, having gotten lost walking home. It didn't take long until she realized someone, or something, was following her. She was still minutes from home so she started picking up the pace and started running. After a minute, the girl turned around, realizing that she was only being chased by a dog. She smiled at her stalker before the dog ran away, whimpering. It disappeared into a yard as the girl started sensing something was wrong. As she slowly turned around, she saw a pale jester with a stretched out grin running her. He wore a full red and black jester costume with grey skin. The girl screamed as she started running into the forest, constantly looking back to make sure the jester wasn't catching up. Turning around for a quick glance, the jester was gone. As the girl turned her attention forward, the jester stuck out a cane, tripping her. The girl fell forward, getting her dress dirty as she tried to pick herself up. The jester giggled hideously as if that was all it could do as the girl rolled onto her back. But instead of screaming, the girl started laughing. The jester looked at her in confusion as the girl shouted. "NOW!" A baseball bat flew into the jester's face, sending him reeling back as a shotgun blast hit its kneecaps. As the jester began regenerating immediately, a teenage boy walked out, carrying a jack-in-the-box. A knife slit the jester's wrist as the blood dripped into the open box. A haunting version of 'Pop Goes The Weasel' played as a dark smoke sucked the jester into the box where it was quickly closed. "Tape," Jacob Johnson said as Tommy Jarvis reached into a bag with one hand while holding the shotgun with the other. He tossed it to Jacob, who quickly sealed it. "Let's get this thing to the vault." The girl stood up as John Strode slapped him on the back. "Nice job, Andy." "I don't get why I always have to be the bait," Andy said as he pulled off a blonde wig. "And the girl." "Because you're just do darn pretty in that dress." Jacob told him as he grabbed the bag to shove the box in. "Don't you get any ideas, once this dress comes off, it's staying off... Give me a minute, I need to rephrase that," Andy told him. "I just want to go home and have a drink before bed. Been dying to open that bottle of absinthe I swiped on our last job." "Whoa," Tommy said as he stopped. "You... stole a bottle of absinthe. And you weren't going to share with the rest of us?" "I was saving it for a special occasion," Andy said as he looked at his watch. "Oh, look, it's midnight. Reason enough for me, let's party!" "I still can't believe you let him drink," John told Tommy. "He's 12." "He's also been tortured, brutalized and separated from his mom," Tommy said. "Let him have his vice. Hell, we smoke pot. Jacob likes to retreat into the dream world to unwind for... whatever he does in there. This life, chasing monsters, saving people... it's a lot of stress. Gotta keep ourselves from going insane somehow." "You mean beyond the fact that we have to deal with masked serial killers, possessed dolls and dream slashers on an almost daily basis?" John asked. "Well, we haven't actually seen those specific assholes in a long time," Jacob said. "They might actually all be dead." "They're never dead," Andy assured him. "They always find a way back." * L.A. In a large cavern under an old hollowed out tree in the park, a pair of black buckled shoes with short legs wearing green and white socks wandered through a dusty mess, with a few rays of moonlight shining through. Finally stopping and observing blood pieces of a body strewn throughout, the intruder started frantically looking until he found a large black pot filled with gold pieces. "Rest in Hell, me brother. Know that you're pot of gold is safe with me," the creature said as he started counting the gold pieces. "A shilling is gone! Every Leprechaun has 100 gold shillings! Someone stole it before murdering me bastard sibling! I'll track down the thief! Run if you dare, and run if you can! You'll never outrun me, I'm a Leprechaun!" * In an old abandoned Victorian house in the Midwest, Tommy opened a locked vaulted door in the basement, leading into a large room filled with antiques, making it look like a pawn shop. There were several items adorning the room, such as a music box, a kaleidoscope, a snowglobe, a ham radio, a ghostface mask, and a gold medallion among others. Tommy sat the Jack-in-the-box down on a shelf before sealing the vault and heading back upstairs. In the living room, Andy had fallen asleep on the couch as John took the liquor bottle out of his hand. Andy had fallen asleep before he even get the lid off. He put a blanket over the boy and took a long drink from the bottle himself. "He's had a long night," John said as he sat in a chair. "These late nights can't be good for him." "Duh, that's part of why he drinks," Jacob said as he played on the laptop. "The other part is that he still really misses Danny. The Cult of Thorn really fucked him up during the two years they had him. They worked so hard to break him and make him loyal to their new chosen one that they succeeded too well. They gave him something to hold onto and care about. That kid was the reason Andy didn't completely break." "When we know more about the Cult, we'll go back for the kid," John told him. "My mom and Karen are still working on that." "In the meantime, we have an entire room of deadly cursed objects," Tommy said as he walked in. "That seems to grow by the day. Didn't realize there was this much evil out there. We really do need to expand this team." "With who?" John asked. "Everyone we've tried to recruit thinks we're the ones that are psycho, like that Sydney girl." "Who, in short order, pegged John as a mama's boy, me as a psycho willing to sacrifice children, Jacob as a chronic masturbator and Andy as an alcoholic." Tommy told them. "Well, I do love my mom." John said. "I have a lot of turn ons." Jacob told him. "I did teach a 12-year-old to field strip a rifle in twenty seconds." Tommy added. "If Andy were awake, he'd already be taking two shots of gin since he has to do that everytime someone calls him an alcoholic," Jacob said. "Well, how about that sheriff we saved from Bughuul. That kid he was looking after was willing to join us." "We already have two kids, we're at our quota," John said. "We need fighters, or at least someone that has knowledge of the supernatural shit we keep running into." "Well, how about this guy?" Jacob asked as he turned the laptop around. "Guy out in L.A. claims that a Leprechaun killed his friends and kidnapped his girlfriend. Got a nice little bodycount that he's wanted for. Girl's backing him up, but no one's believing either of them." "Could be something there," Tommy told him. "Where's the guy now?" "Police are looking for him now," Jacob said. "If he's dodged the police for this long, and if this Leprechaun story is legit..." "We leave in the morning," Tommy told him. "Gear up and get a thermos of coffee ready for Andy." * L.A. The young blonde woman sat on her bed as she listened to the news report about the police still searching for the young man wanted in connection for four murders on St. Patrick's Day. Cody Ingalls had always been in trouble with the law, ever since he was taken in by a con man after the death of his parents. His guardian since Cody was 8, Morty taught Cody all about how to con and cheat, always focusing on the goal. Bridgit stared a picture of her and Cody, taken not too long before that horrible night when she'd been kidnapped by a Leprechaun, who intended to make her his bride. Cody had risked everything to save her, even losing his guardian Morty in the process. Cody had successfully saved his girlfriend and killed the Leprechaun, but the police wanted Cody in relation to the murders that the Leprechaun had committed. Even Bridgit's backing up Cody's story didn't help as she hadn't been present for any of the murders and no one would believe that a Leprechaun had done it. So Cody went on the run until he could find a way to clear his name. A tap came from the window as Bridgit went to open it as Cody quickly climbed in, falling to the floor. He quickly got to his feet and kissed her. "Did you miss me?" "Cody? You shouldn't be here, the police are looking for you," Bridgit told him. "They have orders to shoot on sight." "Already thought of that," Cody said as he pulled the gold shilling out of his pocket as Bridgit started to scream. Cody quickly put his hand over her mouth. "Now, I know what you're going to say--" "Cody, that coin nearly got us killed! You said you didn't need it anymore." "Well, that was kind of before I had four murders pinned on me," Cody told her. "I went back and found the coin. Might come in handy if it protects me from bullets. Maybe it'll even bring me luck in clearing my name." "Or bring another killer to your doorstep," Bridgit told him. "Cody, please, get rid of the coin before more people get hurt." "Trust me, no one's going to get hurt," Cody told her. "It's going to be okay, we can be together and this whole thing will be over." A sound came from outside the door as it started to open. Bridgit's father walked in, finding his daughter standing by the window alone. Cody hid under the bed, trying to remain as quiet as possible. "Bridgit?" her father asked. "Are you okay? I thought I heard voices." "No, Daddy, everything's fine," Bridgit said as he walked past her and brushed open the curtain, seeing nothing outside. Meanwhile, a pair of men's brown shoes stuck out from under the bed. The man looked down and frowned. "I knew it, it's that boy," her father said as she pulled the blanket back, finding just the shoes. "What are these?" "Those-- those are mine," Bridgit told him as she saw Cody sneaking out of the room as his back was turned. She grabbed her father and quickly hugged him. "Oh, Daddy, I was so scared! I'm just glad to be home safe." "Don't worry, baby, you'll never have to see that horrible murdering boy again," her father said. "The police have orders to kill on sight." Bridgit glanced down into the yard where Cody was running across the lawn. "That was my favorite pair of shoes," Cody said as he saw a police car coming up the street. He ducked behind a tree as it passed. "This coin has to help me. Just gotta figure out how to use it." * Andy spit a mouthful of coffee out. , "What the hell is this shit? This isn't the gourmet stuff!" "We don't have any more gourmet stuff," Jacob told him. "Haven't had a chance to go shopping lately." "Then I'm glad I brought this," Andy said as he pulled out a beer bottle. "That'll get me through breakfast." "So, how are we supposed to find this guy once we get to L.A.?" Jacob asked as he grabbed the bottle away, at which point Andy pulled another one out. Jacob grabbed that one as Andy pulled out a third. "I can do this all day, brotha!" Andy told him. "Jacob can find him through his dreams," Tommy said. "This job should be easy. We find the guy, we see if his story's legit. If it is, we offer him a deal. We help clear his name if he helps us with whatever he knows on how to kill Leprechauns." "I don't even need him to sleep since my powers have been growing," Jacob said. "If the guy evens yawns I might be able to pinpoint him." "Then focus on that," Tommy said. "If you can, set up a meeting so we can talk as soon as we hit town." "Got it, boss," Jacob said as he looked at Andy. "I know why you drink." "Do you?" Andy asked. "I know why you masturbate to those letters under your bed." "Why are searching through my room?" "Why do you keep trying to pry into my mind to see what the Cult did to me over those two years? I know how to keep my memories hidden, that's why you can't see them when you dream." "I just want to help you," Jacob said. "You don't have to keep your pain to yourself." "Yeah," Andy said as he looked out the window. "I kinda do." * Lubdan the Leprechaun, wearing a cape and top hat walked down the street, trying to sense his missing shilling. "The coin came through this street, perhaps it's where the thief and I shall meet," Lubdan said as he a man holding a 'Cash 4 Gold' sign. He had a gold nose ring and looked bored holding the sign. "Cash for gold?" Lubdan asked. "I could always use more gold." "No, you give us gold, and we give you cash, dude," the man said. "That's how it works." "Does it now?" Lubdan asked. "I'll be taking your gold, lad. Hand it over, and you might be allowed to live." The man lowered himself to Lubdan's eye level and started poking him. "Fuck off, little ma--" Lubdan grabbed the man's nose ring and ripped it off, taking a good chunk of his nose with it. The man started screaming as he fell back and tried to crawl away. Lubdan laughed as he held up the nose ring in the moonlight, peeling the remaining skin off. "It's not me shilling, but it's a start!" * "I don't think this situation can get any worse," Cody said as he stared down at the pair of sandals he'd found in a garbage bin. "I lost Morty, my shoes, my freedom, and I'm in danger of losing my girlfriend. And all of because of that little green bastard. Too bad I can't wish him back to life to kill him all over again." Finding his way into the woods, Cody found a large tree to rest under. "Tomorrow morning I'll find a way to use this coin to prove that I didn't kill anyone. Maybe I can use it's magic and prove that the Leprechaun was real." Cody let out a yawn as he sat back and closed his eyes. * "Found him," Jacob said as he sat in the van. As he focused, the van faded away, replaced by the woods Cody had rested in. Turning his head, Jacob found Cody sleeping under a large oak tree. Carefully approaching him, Jacob was about to put a hand on shoulder when a thunderstorm started over his head. "Great." Standing up, Jacob heard the crashing sound of water flooding toward him, burying him under a wave. Trying to breathe, Jacob started swimming toward the top of the water, before something grabbed his ankle, pulling him back down. A man in a hockey mask was just below him as Jacob struggled to get away. "Hey, wake up!" Andy said as he shook Jacob awake. He opened his eyes and found he was soaking wet. "That's a lot of sweat." "That's not sweat, that's water," Jacob told him. "I found Cody in the woods, but before I could get to him, I was thrown into a lake somehow. There was something pulling me under, but I couldn't see clearly." "There's a small wooded area where we're headed," John said as he looked at the map on the laptop. "He might be in there." "Then that's where we'll start," Tommy said as he looked in the rearview mirror at Jacob. "Are you going to be okay?" "A quick change into some dry clothes and I'll try again," Jacob said as he pulled off his shirt. "I don't know what went wrong." "There's no lakes near those woods," John told him. "I think you're getting your dream wires crossed." "Or it's a vision of something else," Jacob said as he reached for his bag. "It's just weird since I've never had overlapping visions before." "Let us know if it happens again," Tommy told him. "The last thing we need is your dream powers going haywire." * "Ah, the woods is where my shilling be," Lubdan said as he sensed his coin. "I'll claim it and start a new killing spree. I'll add me brother's gold to my own, and become the richest Leprechaun ever known!" * Jacob went to sleep once again, finding Cody sleeping in the woods. "Cody, wake up," Jacob said. "We need to talk." Cody opened his eyes and sat up. "Who the hell are you?" "My name is Jacob, and we think we can--" Jacob saw a sudden fear in Cody's eyes and turned around in time to Jason Voorhees stomping toward them with a machete. TO BE CONTINUED... |
Ed's Note - Be sure to catch up on Mighty Max, and then NW: The Gathering, before you carve into Nightmare Warriors!
by Tobias ChristopherJust a body. Meat, bones, some skin... Archives
July 2020
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