Tommy Jarvis sat silently in a chair while the doctor stared at him. Tommy's hair had finally grown back after having cut most of it off in a ruse to fool Jason Voorhees in order to save Tommy's older sister. He hadn't spoken a word since that horrific night six months ago.
"Your sister is doing well," the doctor said. "Your father sends his regards as well. With a little progress you may be able to have visitors soon." Dead silence continued to fill the air as Tommy just stared at the doctor. "Tommy, I can't help you unless you help me," the doctor told him. "I don't want to see you spend the rest of your life here. You need to open up to me, tell me about that night." Tommy started shaking as he remembered every detail of that night. The death of his mother and dog; the fear of seeing Jason Voorhees killing the college kids next door; Watching Jason nearly murder his sister; then repeatedly killing Jason with own machete until he stopped moving; and worst of all, the fact that it actually felt... good. Tommy soon fell out of his chair, with the the orderlies having to come in to sedate him. It would be another year before Tommy would start speaking and finally making strides to get out of the mental asylum, although he would never forget the night he met Jason Voorhees. * Andy Barclay's vision remained blurred as he lay on his stomach, having been struck by a 2x4 moments earlier. Andy thought he saw something familiar standing far away, something that looked like-- "M-- Mom?" Andy whispered as Karen Barclay held a flare gun toward Chucky's girlfriend Tiffany. "Karen, you're looking insane as ever," Chucky said as he put out the fire from the flare gun that had struck him. "Been looking forward to killing you for years. You think you got enough ammo to finish me before I kill little Andy?" "You can't kill me, you need my body for your soul." Andy told him. "Wrong, dipshit," Chucky said. "I've learned to like this body, so I'm gonna keep it. And now that I've got the whole Barclay family in one place, I'll just finish the lot of you here!" As Karen got distracted, Tiffany knocked the flare gun out of her hand as the two started fighting. Chucky looked at Andy and let out a roar as he ran toward the boy with his knife. "Not this time," Andy said as he saw the grenade, reaching for it and shoving it into Chucky's mouth before pulling the pin. "Enjoy playtime in Hell." Andy threw Chucky into the air as high as he could as Chucky exploded, raining plastic and blood all around. Andy got up as Karen punched Tiffany, knocing her away. As Tiffay rolled onto her back, she started laughing. "You know we just blew your boyfriend up, right?" Andy asked. "You think that can kill Chucky so easily?" Tiffany asked. "He's coming for you, little boy. And he's going to kill you nice and slow, and I'm going to enjoy watchi--" Karen kicked her unconscious as she stared at Andy before pulling him into a hug. "Five years," Karen said as she started crying as she stared at her son, no longer seeing the scared 6-year-old boy, but a young man who had become capable of defending himself. "You've grown." "I thought about you every day," Andy said as he kept hugging her. "I knew I'd get to see you again. Everyone told me I was crazy. Now we can go home and be a family again." "No, Andy, we can't." Karen told him. "What? Why?" Andy asked as his heart started breaking. "I'll explain later, but we need to find your friends." * Tommy barely managed to avoid a large metal bolt that had embedded itself into the wall. "You can't run forever," the teenager with the scarred face said as he reloaded his modified crossbow. "You know I'm only playing with you right now. The second I get tired of the hunt, I'm going to pin you to that wall." "Okay, Tommy, think," Tommy said to himself as he ducked behind a hedge. "I have no weapons, places to hide, and my friends are in trouble elsewhere. I'm on my own. How do I disarm this jerk?" The teenager got closer, ready to shoot a bolt into Tommy's head at close range. "The sooner I finish you, the sooner I can go find the bastard who made me look like this," the scar-faced boy said. "Come on out so I can kill you properly." Tommy started breathing heavily as he flashed back to being 12-years-old and hiding from Jason. He closed his eyes and remembered manning up to save his sister. Then he remembered that John and Andy were in the same situation that he was in and opened his eyes. "You want me?!" Tommy said as he rushed out and tackled him. "Come get me!" Tommy started punching him again and again before wrestling the crossbow away and knocking the teenager out with it. "Thanks for the weapon, douche," Tommy said as he stood up and looked at the named carved on the weapon. "Henry. Well, Henry, you're getting off light tonight, and you still look reasonably human. But if you come after my friends again, I'll kill you without question." * "Tommy and Andy have to be here somewhere," John said as he looked for any kind of weapon that he could use. Michael Myers would be outside any moment, and thanks to the enemy having prepared for them, the trio of heroes were stripped of their weapons and clothing, leaving them in their underwear with only their wits to defend themselves. "Alright, let's try this," John said as he spotted an angel statue. He rushed up to it and struggled against it, eventually breaking one of the stone arms off. "It's not much, but it's something. Alright, Uncle Mike, let's dance." The doors swung open as Michael Myers quietly stepped outside, knowing that both Laurie Strode and her son John were on the grounds. So far he'd found the asylum to be completely empty, which he thought nothing of. He had only been focused on killing anyone he came across, and so far outside of the guard at the gate, he'd found no one. As he got further out into the grounds, Michael listened around for any sound that would alert him to his prey. Laurie and John had eluded him for a very long time, and once they were gone he'd be able to rest. John stood very quietly not too far away, ready to strike with the stone arm. Michael wasn't too far away at this point, knowing someone was out there with him. He could hear the heavy breathing of someone close, and got ready to turn a corner when-- WHAM! A large shovel from a landscaping job hit him upside the head once, then a few more times for good measure, sending Michael falling back. John thought he'd heard something and was about to emerge when an arm grabbed him. "I thought I told you to stay away," Laurie Strode said as she stood there with a shovel. "You shouldn't have come. And where are your pants?" "Have I ever listened to you?" John smirked as he hugged her. "I couldn't stay away, not when a horde of serial killers were on their way. He was coming for you. We tried to send a message, but--" "We got it, Dr. Gordon's on our side," Laurie told him as she looked around. "Where are your friends? Where's Alice's son?" "Wait, Alice is here?" John asked. "Jacob jumped ship just before we got to the town border. We got ambushed and lost everything. Tommy and Andy are here somewhere, I don't know if they're okay." "Well, for now let's you something warm to wear," Laurie said. "We'll get the others and find your friends." "Others?" John asked. * Andy had dug through the storage unit to find a set of clothes to put, finally finding a t-shirt and pair of pants. Soon Laurie walked in with John, who rushed to Andy, giving him a big bear hug. "Are you okay, kid?" John asked. "I thought they might have--" "I spent two years being tortured and mindraped," Andy said. "I'm not afraid of dolls anymore." "What's this about being tortured?" Karen asked. Andy held up his wrist with the thorn tattoo on it. "We've got a lot to catch up on. Right now we need to find Tommy." John grabbed a tank top and blue jeans, quickly pulling them. "We need to talk to Alice. Jacob's scared to death to enter Springwood. Maybe she can talk him into coming back." "Alice is looking for Jacob right now," Karen told them. "She stopped taking Hypnocil the moment we got your message, she was waiting for its effects to wear off." "Freddy could get her without Jacob here," John said. "If we can get to the van, I can hotwire it and force Jacob here. But Michael's still out there." "And so is Chucky's girlfriend," Andy told them. "And whoever's trying to kill Tommy. We need weapons." "This whole asylum is a weapon," Laurie told the boys. "I've been preparing for Michael since 1978. And if anyone else wants a taste of what Michael's getting, they can have it." "Karen, you keep an eye on Alice, wake her if you see she needs it," Laurie told her. "John, the confiscation room is next door. You and Andy find what you need in case you run into trouble trying to get to your van." "And what are you going to do?" John asked. "I'm going to wait for Michael." * "There it is," Jacob said as he saw Westin Hills up ahead with the gate wide open. "Don't worry, Mom, if you're in there, I'll find you. I'm not going to let Freddy get you." Sneaking past the gate, Jacob headed to the building and found an unlocked door. Not too far away, Tommy wielded the crossbow and saw Jacob slowly sleepwalking toward the asylum. "Oh, shit, he's asleep!" Tommy shouted. "Jacob! Jacob, wake up!" Before he could get to the boy, Jacob had phased through the door as Tommy arrived, finding the door locked. He started pounding on the door, not caring who heard him. "Jacob!" * As soon as Jacob had walked through the asylum door, he found himself in Freddy's old house. He quickly turned and found the front door was now locked. The sounds of a crying baby echoed through the walls as a small red tricycle wheeled through the dining room on its own. "No," Jacob said as he realized he was in his old pajamas. "Please, no." "Your friends can't help you now," Freddy's voice laughed. "You're all alone, but don't worry, mommy and daddy will be along shortly." "You leave my parents alone!" Jacob shouted. "It's me you want, you disfigured fuck! Come and get me!" The boy kept looking around, knowing Freddy could attack from any direction. He couldn't lower his guard for even a second. "Dad. He's in this house somewhere. I have to save him." As he rushed past the dining room, the basement door slowly crept open. "Noooope!" Jacob said as he saw the staircase and decided to head upstairs first. Rushing up the stairs, Jacob quickly found he had actually descended downstairs to the basement. "Ah, son of a bitch!" Jacob slowly walked across the cold concrete, feeling the coldness of the basement all around him. The hanging chains rattled as he slowly made his way toward the boiler room. "I know you're here, Freddy! I want my Dad!" "All in due time, brat," Freddy told him from all around. "But first we're going to have some fun." A chain quickly wrapped around Jacob's neck, pulling him into the air as he started choking. "What's the matter? The little Dream Master too scared to fight back? You should be, you've always been weak. You'd never have been able to face me." "One-up him," Jacob told himself as he struggled to breathe. "Have to be better." The chain around his neck turned to tissue paper as he fell to the ground, gasping as he tried to get up. The ground under him started heating up as Jacob got to his feet and looked down at his Spider-Man pajamas. He jumped and stuck to the wall as the room started rotating, causing him to roll around the room as it spun. "Sorry, Freddy, but I can be better than you at this," Jacob said as he pulled out two swords and stuck them to the floor, giving him leverage to keep from rolling. "What else you got!?" "Jacob!" a familiar voice shouted. "Jacob, honey?" "Mom?" Jacob asked as he saw his mother rushing through the door. "Are you okay? Come on, let's get out of here!" Jacob was the verge of tears as he rushed toward his mother, just as the boy saw another Alice emerging from the wall. "Jacob, duck!" the other Alice shouted as she tossed an axe at the first Alice. It went right through as Freddy started laughing. "Jacob was axing for you!" the fake Alice shouted as she morphed back into Freddy. "It's been a long time, bitch." "Mom, is that really you?" Jacob asked as he started to run toward her, but Freddy backhanded him with his glove, sending him onto his back. Before he could recover, Freddy grabbed him by the hair and lifted him up. "This has been a long time coming," Freddy said as he held a bladed glove at Jacob's throat. "I can cut your throat before you can scream, brat." "He's got Dad," Jacob told her in a weak voice. "He's in the house somewhere." Freddy laughed as he motioned toward the boiler where Dan appeared, draped in chains while battered and bloody. "Dan?" Alice asked. "A little family reunion," Freddy said. "Now you can all die together and live in torment." "Freddy, you want me," Alice said. "You've always wanted me. I'm the one who kept beating you. I'm the one who got away, the one you could never beat. Let Jacob and Dan go, and you can have me. I won't even fight back. The easiest kill you'll ever make." "Mom, no!" Jacob pleaded. "Tempting, but a quick kill isn't as much fun," Freddy told her. "You're powerless. I can gut and kill little Jacob here and you wouldn't be able to lift a finger to stop me. You've got nothing I want, outside of your blood." "I do have one thing," Alice said as she looked at her son. "I have back-up." Jacob took a deep breath and grabbed Freddy's gloved hand, twisting it as he stood up. As he concentrated, the ghosts of the Dream Warriors appeared, each one taking a shot at Freddy. Taryn's switchblades, Kinkaid's punches, Joey's sonic scream, Kristen's kicks, Will's warlock powers, Rick's karate moves, Sheila's bug zapper and many others launched their attacks at once. "You have no power over us anymore!" Nancy shouted as she stood at the front of the ghosts. "We're free!" "Only as long as the brat can focus," Freddy said as he stood up. "Isn't that right, Alice?" "Mom! Watch out!" Jacob shouted as another Freddy popped up, stabbing Alice in the back. "NO!" Losing focus, the Dream Warriors quickly faded as Nancy looked at Jacob before fading. "Take away his power, Jacob. Make him fear you." Jacob caught his mother, crying as he held her. She smiled as Jacob touched her cheek. "Don't leave me, Mommy," Jacob pleaded. "Please." "You're more powerful," Alice whispered as her body faded into a white light. "I love you." Freddy laughed harshly as Jacob's anger built. He stared over at his father, bound in chains and unable to speak. "You stole my family," Jacob said as he sat there. "You've tormented me since before I was even born. You tried to make me be like you. You tried to make me into a monster like you. Then you took my dad and my mom. My whole life I've been scared of you, giving you power. Well, I take it back," Jacob stood up and stared at Freddy. "I want every ounce of power I've given you back!" "You think that trick will work with me?" Freddy asked. "It didn't work with Nancy. Why do you think it'll work with you?" "Because," Jacob said with a smile. "I'm the fucking Dream Master! This is my world now, and you're no longer a part of it!" Jacob turned his back on Freddy. "You have no more power here in 3, 2..." Freddy went to strike before he disappeared in a burst of light. As soon as Freddy was gone, Jacob quickly went to unchain Dan, hugging him tightly. "You did great, son," Dan told him. "I'm proud of you." "But Mom died because of me. I lost her." "You'll never lose her," Dan promised as his body started turning to light. "Look for us in the Beautiful Dream. We love you." Dan faded away, leaving Jacob alone as he cried, knowing his parents were now in a better place. * John and Andy had armed themselves with a ball bat and machete and headed out the door when they found Tommy carrying Jacob in his arms. "I think he did it," Tommy told them. "I think he beat Freddy, but I can't get him to wake up." "Then let's go finish Michael Myers," John said. "Let's finish this and get our moms the hell out of here." * Michael walked down the halls, looking for his sister when he finally found her standing there with a large knife in her hand. "Come on," Laurie told him. "Let's finish this for real this time." The boys entered the hallway just as Karen did. "If we all take him at once, we can kill him," Andy said as Karen pulled him back. "What's wrong, Mom? Where's Alice?" "Alice is dead," Karen told them. "I think Freddy got her. I tried to wake her, but I was too late. Is Jacob--?" "He's alive, he's just not waking up," Tommy said. "But John's right, the three of us can take him." "No, Andy can't fight him," Karen said. "I won't lose him, too." "What do you mean?" Andy asked as Michael followed Laurie around the corner. "I've been trained to fight him for the last two years." "Andy, I never wanted you to know this, but... Michael Myers killed your father." "No, you said he died in a car accident," Andy told her. "You said he was in Heaven and--" "I didn't think you could handle the real truth," Karen said. "You were 4 and he was in Illinois on business. Michael Meyers murdered him one night while investigating a court case. Your father was figuring out what had happened with the SIlver Shamrock corporation when several people were murdered. I lost your father, I won't lose you, too." Andy backed away slowly. "Then I have to kill him. He has to die because of what he did to Dad." Before they could catch him, Andy ran off. John looked at Tommy and Karen as he held onto his ball bat with a nail embedded in it. "Take care of Jacob, I'll watch after Andy," John told them. "I'll keep him safe." * Michael walked at a normal pace down the hall, following Laurie where ever she tried to run to. "Come on, you bastard!" Laurie shouted. "We're almost there." Just as they were almost to the kitchen, Andy came from out of nowhere, screaming as he stabbed Michael in the leg with the machete. He started pulling the machete out of the wound as Michael grabbed him by the throat and started choking him. "Andy!" Laurie shouted as she stabbed Michael in the back, but it had little effect as he smacked her backward while still choking Andy. "Let go of the kid!" John shouted as he swung the ball bat up into Michael's crotch, landing the nailed part right into him. Michael was momentarily phased as he dropped Andy to the ground, where he started gasping. "John, get him and the others out of this wing!" Laurie ordered. "I'll be with you soon. Trust me." John put Andy over his shoulder as he started running. "Mom! Be careful, okay? I don't want to lose you, too." Laurie just nodded as she picked up John's ball bat and hit Michael in the back. "Let's go, Michael! Focus on me!" Laurie shouted as she ran into the kitchen. Michael slammed the doors open, seeing the darkened kitchen as he walked in, trying to spot Laurie in the darkness. As he walked through the kitchen, he heard something that sounded a lot like hissing. Laurie stood up with a lighter she'd taken from the confiscation room. She started clicking it as she smiled. "Goodbye, Michael." A flame finally sprung up as she tossed the lighter toward Michael, igniting the open gas lines, creating a massive fireball that began engulfing the hospital wing. "Mom!" John shouted as watched the asylum wing exploding just as he burst through the door to the outside. He met up with Tommy and Karen, laying Andy next to Jacob. Andy continued coughing and hacking as John fell to his knees. "Please, no." "I'm sorry, John," Tommy said as he put a hand on his shoulder. "She did what she had to--" A blurry form walked away from the flames as Tommy grabbed a knife from his waistband. "No fucking way!" Tommy shouted as he got ready to attack. "Wait," John said as he stood up. "Mom?" "I've survived worse than an explosion," Laurie said as she hugged him. "I'm so glad you're not hurt." "I think it might finally be over," John told her. "The nightmare's over." "No, it's not," Tommy said as he looked at the fire. "We've seen what kind of punishment he can take. What kind of punishment any of them can take. I won't believe he's dead until I see a body, and even then I won't fully believe it. Like Jason." "Chucky said he couldn't die," Andy said as he got to his feet. "He always comes back." "Freddy won't stay gone forever, either," Jacob said as Andy helped him up. "He might recruit more monsters to come after us." "But at least we're not alone, now," Andy said as he looked at his mother. "We have our moms now." "No, Andy," Karen said. "I tried to tell you earlier, but... we can't stay with you." "What?" Andy asked as he took a step back. "Why? We've been apart for five years. We can fight these things together." "We talked about this before we got your message," Laurie told him. "The four of you need to stick together, watch out for each other until we all know that Michael and Freddy and Chucky are all gone for good." "And what are you going to do?" John asked. "Stay here?" "No," Karen told them. "We're going to be doing what you're doing. Finding a way to kill these things. Like the voodoo priest that taught Chucky his powers, their might be others who have that kind of knowledge. There's got to be more people out there like him. Maybe one of them knows how to kill him for good." "We'll also investigate the Cult of Thorn. They're responsible for Jamie's death. I'm going to personally make them pay for that. In the meantime, the four of you have started something good that can help people. Find more survivors, learn from each other, figure out a way to stop more death before it happens." "Are we going to see you again?" Andy asked as he held onto his mother. "I promise we'll be together again someday," Karen told him. "I love you, Andy." "This is a lot bigger than us," Tommy said. "This goes far beyond Chucky and Freddy and the rest. There's a lot of evil out of there. Maybe-- maybe if we find more people like us, we might stand a chance." * As the sun started to rise, the group stood around a makeshift grave for Alice. Tommy put a hand on Jacob's shoulder. "This wasn't supposed to happen," Jacob said. "I was supposed to save her. We were supposed to go home after I beat Freddy." "We've all lost something because of these monsters," Tommy told him. "Let's make sure that it doesn't happen to anyone else." Soon the van drove down the highway, looking for new adventures and monsters to slay. The Nightmare Warriors had officially gathered, and now it's the monsters' turn to be afraid...
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7 Years Earlier
4-year-old Andy Barclay sat on the carpet of the rent-controlled apartment building he lived in with his parents. The apartment had originally belonged to his mother Karen's parents, who hadn't been too thrilled that their daughter had married a man who could barely support their daughter. But what they didn't know was that Andrew Barclay Sr had just landed a job at a prestigious law-firm, who were representing victims in a legal suit against The Silver Shamrock Novelties Corporation. Dozens of children had died on Halloween night four years previous and the case was about to go to trial. Barclay won the case, ensuring a huge payday for everyone. But it was the birth of Karen and Andrew's baby boy a month after the murders that caused Karen's parents to come around, not being able to resist the baby's charms. Karen's parents had soon decided to retire and travel, letting Karen, Andrew and their newborn baby move into the apartment, which had more than enough space for a growing boy. Unfortunately when Andy was 2, his grandparents died when their RV crashed on a highway while traveling through California. As Andy played with his remote controlled truck, the phone started to ring as Karen grabbed the cordless phone from the kitchen wall charger, listening as the police told her the horrible news about her husband. Karen looked out into the living room, wondering how to tell her little boy that his father wasn't coming home. Or the circumstances behind her husband's demise... * "This facility is not equipped to deal with threats like Freddy Krueger," Dr. Neil Gordon said as he sat in his office during a 'session' with Alice Johnson. "In fact, it's taking all of my pull just to keep Hypnocil in stock here. I'm the only person in this place that believes in Freddy Krueger, and because of that it's opened my eyes to the plights of your friends and their problems with this Michael Meyers and Chucky. But being the only one here that believes in monsters, there's little I can do beyond providing Hypnocil and not letting them put you all in padded cells." "I appreciate everything you're doing," Alice told him. "But my son is out there, scared and trying to figure out a way to face Freddy. Karen's son is being stalked for his very soul; and Laurie's boy is in very real danger, especially after that news article about his girlfriend being murdered. At some point, one or both of them are going to make their way to try to kill these women. We need a plan to keep your patients and staff safe when they do." "Fortunately I've been working on something for just this sort of thing," Dr. Gordon told her. "It's not much, it might not even ensure everyone's survival. But it's a last ditch effort, probably one that'll get us all killed, or at the very least get me fired." "Whatever we can do," Alice said. "I just wish I could get in contact with Jacob. I'd give anything to know that my little boy is safe." * "So you can swordfight, huh?" Jacob asked Andy late one night as the quartet of Nightmare Warriors had raided a military surplus store after hours. "I'm not the best, but I can hold my own," Andy told him. "The cult made me learn to fight with whatever I can get my hands on. Swords were what I was best with so that's where most of my training went. I had to protect Danny at any cost." "So, is Danny like your boyfriend?" Jacob asked. "I mean, if he is, cool. Not judging or anything." "No, it's nothing like that," Andy told him as he picked up a large hunting knife. "He's just...my best friend. I'd do anything for him, take on anything so he gets to see another day. The Cult forced us to bond through torture and suffering and humiliation, and making us hurt each other. I guess it was supposed to break me and make me loyal to them alone, but they made a mistake. By making me care about him, they gave me something to hold onto. A friend that was always there through all the darkness. Even through all the horror, a part of me knew that if I hung on, I'd still have Danny when it was all said and done. I have to get him out of there." "We will," Jacob promised. "I'm getting better with my dream powers, that'll be a big help when it comes time to raid their hideout." John grabbed a belt of grenades. "Just grab what you can strap to your bodies, kids. Once we leave the van when we get to the asylum, there's no going back until this is over." "This place is going to have high security," Jacob told him. "How are we supposed to smuggle all these weapons past the gate?" "Who said we're stopping at the gate?" Tommy asked as he searched for a large gun. "Hopefully the guards are smart enough to see a nearly seven foot guy in a Shatner mask and a two doll with a knife and run away screaming. Then we'll ram our way in and come out shooting." "Did the asylum ever get our call?" John asked. "I talked to a Dr. Gordon, but it sounded like he was dismissing everything I said," Tommy told him. "I don't think the staff there is going to be any help." "Then it's just us," Andy said as he grabbed a military sword. "The monsters are coming and those people are defenseless." "My mom will know Michael's coming," John said. "She'll at least have some kind of plan." "Freddy had someone working for him, seeking out these guys beyond Springwood, so there might be more human agents against us," Jacob told him. "But there's no telling how much power Freddy's gotten in the last two years, and we can't get our hands on any Hypnocil to protect us from him." "Staying awake might be all we need for that," Tommy said. "Just remember, saving your moms is our #1 priority. Just be prepared for any other surprises. Psycho killers and murderous dolls might not be our only problems, so be careful." * Having fallen asleep, Spencer walked into Freddy's boiler room in the Dream World, where a bloodied and tortured Dan sat on the floor, chained to the boiler itself as he weakly looked up at Spencer. "Help me." Dan said in a weak voice as Freddy backhanded him with his metal glove. "Bad doggy!" Freddy said as he quickly looked at Spencer. "You didn't disappoint me, did you?" "Michael and Chucky are coming," Spencer said nervously. "And-- and that Jacob kid saw me." "The prodigal son returns," Freddy said as he chuckled to himself. "I can kill the little bastard and move on to the next part of my plan. I just need him to set foot into Springwood so I can get him. It'll take a lot of souls to gain that much power again, better get started." "You said I could go after this," Spencer said nervously. "You said you'd let me go." Freddy suddenly appeared behind Spencer, moving his claw under the boy's long blonde hair. "What's the rush?" Freddy asked. "Don't you want to--," a joint suddenly appeared in the tip of Freddy's gloved finger. "Have a little puff before you go?" "I'm cutting back," Spencer said as Freddy laughed, cutting off Spencer's ponytail. "Hey!" "I'm cutting back, too," Freddy said as the joint's end lit up instantly. He put the joint to his mouth as the joint's end lit up brightly. Spencer started laughing, then realized his feet were catching on fire. "Come on, Spencer, light up with me." Spencer started screaming as more of him caught on fire the more the joint started burning, with Freddy inhaling as an accelerated rate. As the joint got smaller, the more the fire spread upward as Spencer struggled, trying to put the fire out. Soon the teenager had been entirely consumed by the fire as a charred corpse fell to the ground. "Sorry, Spencer, but your ass is grass!" Freddy said with an echoing laughter as Dan tried to cover his ears. "Don't worry, Danny boy, you'll live long enough to watch Jacob die painfully in front of his mother." * "Alright, this is it," Tommy said as the van pulled up just outside of Springwood. "Once we drive over the county line, Freddy will be able to screw with us if we fall asleep. Is everyone ready?" John and Andy just stared and nodded while Jacob sat in the corner, nervously shaking. "This is what we've planned for," Tommy said as he turned around. "This is what your mother wanted." "This is what she wanted," Jacob told him. "But what about what I want? I didn't ask for these powers, or for some Dream God to come after me." "None of us asked for this," John said as he put a hand on Jacob's shoulder. "I didn't ask for Michael to show up and slaughter my friends." "I didn't ask for Chucky to throw my babysitter out of the window or kill my foster parents," Andy added. "Or to try to take my soul." "We're all in this shit together," Tommy told him. "We have your back, Jacob. You're not fighting Freddy alone. We're going to kick his ass as a team, but first we have to save your parents. But if you want to stay behind, we'll do this with just the three of us." "Knew you'd understand!" Jacob shouted as he ran out of the van. "Did not see that coming." Tommy said. "So what do we do?" Andy asked. "We fight," John told him. "And just hope we don't fall asleep before we get our moms the hell out of Dodge." "What about Jacob?" Andy asked. "We just have to hope he comes back," Tommy said as he focused on the road ahead. "The night he left Springwood, Freddy would have killed him easily. He's scared even though he's more powerful. He'll come around, but right now we have to go forward." * "I'm sorry, Mom," Jacob said as he ran through the forest, stumbling in the darkness as he ended up rolling down a hill. Upon landing at the bottom, the teenager sat up and noticed a diner across the street as his blurred vision came into view. "I can hang out there for a while." Walking across the empty road to the lone diner in the middle of nowhere, Jacob entered and limped to the counter before sitting down. The diner was dimly lit, and empty except for the waitress pouring coffee into empty glasses at each table. The jukebox was playing the instrumental version of The Human League's 'Human' as a waitress came over with a cup of coffee. "I didn't order--" Jacob said as the waitress walked away. "Okay." Jacob took a sip of the coffee as he tried to breathe. "Now you've done it, Jacob. You're alone in the middle of nowhere. No car, no money, and everyone I know is probably heading into a death trap. Some Dream Master I turned out to be." "Shouldn't you be with your friends?" Nancy Thompson asked as she suddenly appeared next to him. "They don't need me, I'll just get them killed," Jacob told her. "Once Freddy knows I'm in Springwood, he'll come for us. I'm not ready to fight him. I know I've trained, but I just know I'm no match for him. Plus he has my Dad." "Then it's a good thing you have friends to back you up," Nancy said as she looked at him. "ALL of your friends. Remember, you have all of our dream powers at your disposal." "You didn't tell me that one of Joey's dream powers is chronic masturbation." "That's not a dream power, he's just really hormonal." "Then Is one of those powers the ability to talk to my mom?" Jacob asked. "Unfortunately no, she's blocked because of the Hypnocil," Nancy told him. "But you know where to find her in real life." "The others probably already took off," Jacob said as he stared down into his coffee cup. "How am I supposed to reach them?" Nancy just smiled as Jacob felt something tugging at his arm. He woke up at the bottom of the hill across the street where a wolf was chewing on his sleeve. "Cut it out, asshole!" Jacob said as he punched the wolf, sending the wolf rushing off with a yelp. "I'm not dead yet. Now I just need a ride." Jacob looked around and saw an old 10-speed bike laying in a ditch. "I would have also accepted a motorcycle or a porch, but whatever." * Westin Hills Asylum The guard stood in the box at the gate, waiting for anyone to arrive to try to get in. The lowered arm only raised if he pushed the button, otherwise no vehicle would be allowed to pass. The guard just sighed, having been bored out of his mind for the last few hours. At least until he heard something laughing. Looking outside of his box, he found a Good Guy doll sitting up against it. "What the fuck?" the guard asked as the doll looked up at him. "Hi, I'm Chucky. Wanna play?" The guard looked around, not seeing anyone as he picked the doll up. "Where the hell did you come from?" "Hi, I'm Chucky. And I'm here to kill you." "Are you supposed to say that?" the guard asked as a knife went through the back of his throat, emerging from the other side. The guard dropped the doll as he grabbed his throat to try to stop the bleeding, but soon fell dead on the ground. "You know, Mikey, I was a little unsure of you before," Chucky said as he stood up. "But I like your style. Let's go fuck these guys up good." * Having parked the van, Tommy looked through a pair of binoculars at the gate, seeing the dead guard being hidden in the bushes. "They're here," Tommy said as he looked at John and Jacob. "Grab whatever you can, we're going in. I'll scout ahead a bit further. Wait three minutes, then follow." "You sure you're ready for this, kid?" John asked as he sat in the back with Andy. "Do I have a choice?" Andy replied. A loud thump was heard as John looked at Andy. "Shoot at anything that moves. Tommy? You okay?" A smoke grenade flew into the back of the van as John tried opening the door, but couldn't slide the door as it had been blocked with a 2x4 board. As Andy and John fell unconscious, Tiffany stood over Tommy's unconscious body, filing her nail. "Whoever's in charge here doesn't want you dead yet," Tiffany said as she looked down at Tommy. "Personally I'd just rather slit your throat and be done with it, but whatever, I'm only doing this for Chucky." Tiffany opened the door and saw John and Andy were asleep. "There's only two of them. Where's the fourth?" "Oh, boy," a blonde teenager said. He had scars all over his face as he held up a modfied crossbow that shoots metal bolts. "That means a hunt." * Jacob peddled the bike as hard as he could on the old dirt road as he got to the county line which led into Springwood. "You can do this," Jacob said as he stared ahead. "My friends need me. My... mom needs me. I can't let her down." Taking a deep breath, the teenager set a foot over the county line. As he crossed over, he felt a laughing in his head. The skies immediately darkened as thunder was heard in the distance. "Welcome home, Jacob. Feel free to hang around!" Two tree branches reached down and picked Jacob up as Freddy's laughter was heard all around, echoing through the forest. "NO!" Jacob shouted as he broke free of the tree's grip and falling to the ground where he started running. "I'm not asleep, how's he doing this?" Looking down the road, the trees and road started becoming warped, turning into a giant maze. "I have to get to my friends," Jacob said as Freddy backhanded him. Jacob hit the ground and saw Freddy standing there, cackling. "How?" "I've been very busy," Freddy told him. "Two years is a lot of time to build power. I've been doing a lot of... soul searching." Freddy ripped open his sweater, revealing his chest of souls. "You and me are connected," Freddy said as he walked forward as Jacob tried to crawl back. "We're in each other's heads. I can affect you whether you're awake or asleep now that Mommy's passed on her powers. And when I kill you, I'll be unstoppable. But first I want your parents to be here to see this." Freddy pointed to two chairs under a spotlight with Alice and Dan's names on them. "Run to Mommy," Freddy laughed as he pointed ahead. "It's nearly showtime. Don't want her to miss your big death scene." Jacob scrambled to his feet and started running as fast as he could. "The gang's all here," Freddy said to himself. "Let the show begin." * Tommy woke up inside the closed gates of the asylum, immediately realizing something was wrong. He'd been stripped of his clothes and weapons, leaving him in his boxers as he stood up. "What the hell is this?" Tommy asked. "A little game," a voice told him. "You and your friends are outside of the asylum. You have nothing but your bare hands to fight. Chucky and Michael have free reign of the place and can go where ever they desire. You and your two little pals, however, don't. And their precious mothers are somewhere, probably hiding because of your warning." "Our message did get through," Tommy thought to himself. "Not that it'll do any good." "The Asylum's seemingly empty, but don't worry, we'll find every living soul here and tear them apart." * In an underground bunker not too far away, Dr. Gordon had taken the staff and patients underground under the assumption that a terrorist attack was imminent in the area. Only three patients were conveniently missing... * "If the three of you are brave enough to face what's ahead... well, you're still going to die, but at least we'll get a show out of it." "Who the hell are you?" Tommy asked as he looked around. "Me? Someone who's looking for revenge, but since he's not here, I get you while my playmates get your friends. The hunt begins now." A bolt fired from a crossbow embedded itself in the wall behind Tommy as he started running. * On the other end of the asylum, John found himself in the same position, nearly naked and weaponless as he sat up, finding a note. "Michael's coming. You might want to run." Through the darkened window, John saw The Shape's mask looking for the doorway outside. John got to his feet and began running to find any kind of defense. * Andy bolted awake at the sound of a familiar laughter. Andy had found himself near a fountain on the side of the asylum, finding he had nothing to defend himself as well. Shivering as he stood up, Andy saw something small scurrying through the darkness. "I told you that you couldn't run from me," Chucky's voice echoed through the darkness. "You and me? We're friends to the end." "You have to be human right now," Andy said as he quickly turned to face any direction he could. "You can't take my soul." "There are a lot of things I can do now," Chucky assured him. "I've learned a few new tricks, Andy. Did you know that I can never die? You and that bitch Kyle made sure of that. Don't worry, after I'm done with you and your mother, we're going to pay her a little visit, too. I have all eternity to get my revenge on everyone that's ever fucked with me." Andy tried to find where the voice was coming from and fell backwards. "You look cold, Andy. Let me stab you to really get your blood pumping so you can get warm." Chucky let out a roar and jumped at Andy, who just curled his fist and sucker punched him backward. "Come get me, you little shit!" Andy shouted as he got up. "You can't scare me anymore!" "Then let me try," Tiffany said as he hit Andy in the back with a 2x4. The boy flew forward and tried to pick himself up with his hands as Tifany hit him again, forcing him back to the ground. "Really, Chucky? This is the kid that's been giving you trouble for five years?" "He's craftier than he looks," Chucky told her as he pulled out his knife. "Now I'm going to enjoy carving him--" A flare flew into Chucky's chest, sending him flying across the lawn and into the wall, lighting him partially on fire as one of the grenades from the van fell out of his pocket. Another flare flew past Tiffany as she turned to see Karen Barclay standing there with a flare gun. "Get away from my son, you bitch." To Be Continued... My name is Andy Barclay. Not Andrew, not Drew, ANDY. That was my Dad's name and what he liked to be called before he died. I honestly don't remember much more about my Dad, he died when I was four. I just know that he loved me and ever since he died, my life's been going to Hell. My Mom worked her ass off to support me, and even managed to get me the one thing I wanted more than anything for my sixth birthday: a Good Guy doll.
Unfortunately the doll contained the soul of a serial killer named Charles Lee Ray, who proceeded to kill my babysitter and a shitload of other people. I was a stupid six-year-old back then (this is coming from a now mature 11-year-old), I would have believed anything as long I had someone to talk to. Chucky told me all of his secrets, which was a bad move because now I was the only person he could transfer his soul into. He failed three separate times to get me, but the third time I ended up in an even worse situation than a killer doll trying to possess my body... * Two Years Earlier A set of surveillance photos, along with newspaper clippings and family photos dropped onto the table. All of the photos were of one Andy Barclay. "This is him," the man said. "He's the one we need." "This kid can't be any older than eight or nine," the man behind the desk said as he looked at the photo. "He'd be killed immediately." "No, he's one... them." The man looked up with a raised eyebrow. "How can you be so sure?" "He's survived the Lakeshore Strangler twice," the man told him. "A supernaturally powered Lakeshore Strangler. I wasn't positive at first, then I did some digging. I found...something very interesting." A file slid across the desk as the man opened it. "Bring him to me. If this boy is who you say he is, then we'll have the ultimate weapon in our possession. The Cult of Thorn will be unstoppable." * Tiffany Valentine returned to her trailer late at night with several voodoo books in hand. For the last few years, she had desperately seeking out her lover Charles Lee Ray, having figured out that he was still alive after the last set of murders involving Andy Barclay. She was sure that within one of the books she'd acquired that she'd find the one voodoo spell that would lead Tiffany to the love of her life. As Tiffany got to the steps of her trailer, she saw the window had been broken. It had to have been one of those punks in the trailer park. The neighborhood itself wasn't very safe, but she had to keep a low profile to avoid police detection. Like her former lover, Tiffany's hands weren't exactly clean when it came to murder. Reaching into her purse, Tiffany wrapped her blood red nails around a freshly sharpened blade before slowly entering the trailer. "Who's in here?" Tiffany asked as the sound of something shattering came from the bedroom. She approached as the rain started hitting the tin roof of the trailer. There was no one in the bedroom, but a wine glass lay on the floor in pieces. Tiffany slowly kneeled by the bed where the glass had been shattered, slowly raising the blanket to look underneath the bed, only to find nothing. As she raised up, a loud clap of thunder struck, lighting up the room and revealing a Good Guy doll sitting on the bed. "Heya, Tiff." Chucky said before letting loose a familiar laugh. * Springwood Spencer Meyer sat on the couch with his friends, stoned out of their minds as they watched tv, their usual Friday night activity instead of studying or planning for life after high school. "Where did you get this shit?" Spencer asked as he took another hit. "I think I'm starting to see things. Dudes?" Spencer looked at his two friends, seeing they'd been slashed to death, their eyes still open and staring at him. "Whoah. I think I need to lay off this weed." "Come on, Spencer," the teen's friends said in unison while remaining unmoving. "We're just starting to have fun." "What the--," Spencer said the room started shaking. Spencer got up and stumbled as he tried to run for the door, but the room's colors started spinning while the objects all around him lost their color, with the whole world becoming twisted and out of shape. "I don't think I like this anymore." "What's the matter, Spencer?" Freddy Krueger's voice said from all around him. "Never been this high before?" The floor started falling apart, leaving Spencer on a tiny platform hundreds of miles in the air in the middle of a mountain range. The rocks on the mountain started forming into a giant Freddy, with a monstrous gloved hand rising up. "I think I'm ready to wake up now!" Spencer shouted as one of Freddy's bladed fingers reached toward him. "Not before we have a little... talk," Freddy said. "You're going to my new errand boy. I need a few messages delivered, and you're going to mail them for me. And if you fail--" Freddy pushed Spencer off of the platform, letting him fall before catching Spencer in the palm of his hand. "You're going to suffer the worst death I've ever doled out." Spencer realized he'd fallen into a pile of snakes, worms, maggots and spiders, which were now crawling all over him and getting under his skin. Spencer screamed as loud as he could as he woke up on the couch inbetween his sleeping friends. "It was just a dream, that's all." Spencer said as he shook his hair, letting a few maggots fall out onto his shirt. Freddy's laugh echoed all around as Spencer through his joint to the floor. * Today Early morning in the underground compound belong to the Cult of Thorn where Andy Barclay had gotten up early for the big day. Today he would prove his worth to the cult after two hellish years of intense training, torture and brainwashing to break his spirit so that he could be remolded for the Cult's purposes. After getting dressed, Andy headed to the room up the hall where a boy his age stared into a mirror. Andy dropped to his knees as the boy noticed him. Danny Strode turned to stare at him, remaining silent as kneeled down, placing his forehead against Andy's, knowing that it wasn't going to be an easy day for either of them. "I promised that I would die for you," Andy said. "After everything we've been through, my life is yours until the end, no matter what happens." A tear fell down Danny's face before he stood up and faced the mirror. As Andy got to his feet, his stared toward the door. "We'll get through this together," Andy promised. "Friends to the end, Danny." * A motel just outside of Haddonfield "Andy Barclay was six years old when he got involved in a series of murders that he claimed were committed by a serial killer's soul living inside of his Good Guy doll," Tommy said as he paced around the room. "After getting taken away from his mother and put into foster care, the murders started up again. Andy got put back into the system, but disappeared after his foster father turned up dead. Andy hasn't been since that night two years ago." "Meanwhile, more murders in the style of Charles Lee Ray continued to happen all over the Eastern states," John added as he typed away on his laptop. "But no descriptions matching Andy." "So Chucky never got him?" Tommy asked. "Maybe he killed him." "Nancy said he was alive," Jacob told him. "And that he needed help. Someone else grabbed him before Chucky could get to him. And I can't seem to reach him directly through his dreams, I only get brief flashes when I try. So either he's not sleeping or someone's screwed with his mind enough to where I can't get into his head." "So how do we find him?" John asked. "If the boy is off the grid, how are we supposed to help him?" "You said you can't reach him directly," Tommy said as he looked at Jacob. "How would you be able to reach him?" "When he lets his guard down," Jacob said. "There were moments when he was... weaker. When he thinks about his mother or...," a tear fell from Jacob's eye. "It's too horrifying to even say out loud. These guys, they did some horrible stuff to break him." "You can tell us, Jacob," Tommy said as Jacob whispered into his ear. Tommy's face went pale as he stood up. "These fuckers are dead, I don't care who they are. Do whatever you have to in order to find him, Jacob, we're getting that kid out of there. Andy was last seen in the Chicago area, we'll start there, maybe we'll get lucky and find a clue. Jacob, think you can keep trying to find Andy?" "I guess," Jacob said as he lay back on the bed. "I just woke up from a two year coma, I don't know if I can just go back to sleep for more than a few minutes." "I know you can do this, kid," Tommy said. "You're The Dream Master. If anyone can find this kid, you can. Meanwhile, John and I are going to see what we can find." * "We found him," a man said to the robed leader of the Cult of Thorn later that day. "Michael Myers has been spotted at his old asylum, he murdered half the night staff and ransacked the office. He's not too far away from there." "He's looking for his sister," the man smirked. "He must have given up trying to find his nephew. Keep an eye of him, we'll bring the boys and end this. Once Danny stabs Michael with the cursed dagger, Danny will become the new embodiment of evil, forever cursed." * "Come on, Andy," Jacob said after having taken a few sleeping pills. Soon he found himself in the dream scape, walking through a hall of mirrors. "I know you're out there, I just need you to be a little drowsy." Jacob found himself staring into a foggy mirror where Andy had started to take a quick nap on the road to where ever he was being driven to. It was a nightmarish scape where the boy found himself in a Good Guy factory where there were hundreds of Chuckys chasing him, all of them armed. "You can't run from me, Andy!" Chucky shouted, leading an army of himself. "I'm going to kill you!" "Get away from him, you little bastards!" Jacob shouted as he jumped through the mirror and landed with a large howitzer. He opened fire on the Chuckys as Andy stopped and slowly walked back. "It' s okay, Andy, they can't hurt you. This is all just a dream." "The real Chucky's out there," Andy said in a scared tone. "He's going to find me." Jacob looked at all the bullet riddled Chuckys before looking at Andy. "You've beaten this guy twice, kid. With help, you can put him down for keeps. Me and my friends can help. Where are you?" "It's not just Chucky," Andy told him. "The Cult of Thorn. Even if Chucky never finds me, the Cult will never let me go." "Tell me where you," Jacob said. "We'll save you, I promise. But we have to know where they're taking you." Andy shed a tear as he looked at Jacob. "Okay, but you have to promise me something...." * "They're heading toward Michael Myers," Jacob said to Tommy over the phone. "He's in Haddonfield." "Sit tight, we're coming back to get you," Tommy said. "We're not that far away." "No, you go to Andy," Jacob told him. "I have an idea on how to deal with Michael Myers. I don't think we're prepared enough to kill him with the Cult around, but I may be able to keep him down long enough for you to get Andy and get out of there. Here's what you need to do." "John, we need to make a quick stop." Tommy said as he noticed a pharmacy that was closed for the night. * An unmarked van arrived near the woods around Haddonfield. "This is it," the robed man said as he looked into the back. "It's you or him, Danny. Do not disappoint us." Andy put a hand on Danny's shoulder, squeezing it gently. "I've got your back, Danny. We can do this." "Remember, Andy," the robed man said. "If Danny doesn't come back, then you don't come back." Andy nodded as they got out of the van and started walking. "You don't have to do this, Andy," Danny told him. "Once Michael dies... I won't be the same person. I'll be... just like him." "I don't believe that," Andy said. "I don't believe that you won't be my best friend. We've spent the last two years bonding, both by force and because I really like you. I know you, Danny. You'll be nothing like him." Not too far away, Tommy and John arrived, entering a different section of the forest. "We are insanely under prepared for this," John said. "We were supposed to stockpile weapons until we were ready for him. For all of them." "We're not here to kill, we're here to extract," Tommy reminded him. "This Andy kid is important. Jacob believes it, so I do, too." "And what if Jacob's wrong? You're putting all of our chips on a kid who's been in a coma for two years. And who the hell is this Nancy he was talking about?" "The original Dream Master," Tommy told him. "Who's been... dead for the last few years." "Oh, that makes me feel better." "Just trust me, okay? And get ready, when we do find Myers, we have to move fast." * "Do you remember the first night we met?" Danny asked as he held a golden dagger in his hand. "The night they brought you to the compound?" "Yeah," Andy said. "It was just another night for me, apparently." "You weren't crying," Danny reminded him. "You weren't scared. You tried like hell to get away time after time until they finally had to break your arm to teach you a lesson." "They just dislocated it, actually," Andy said. "Just enough to where when they reset it, it hurt like hell. They had to start my... training and a broken arm wouldn't help that. Then the real torture began. I... hated having to hurt you." "Their form of getting us to bond," Danny said. "That wasn't your fault, Andy. After a while, I stopped feeling pain. Just like you did. We became best friends because of what they made us do. We stopped feeling pain, and I stopped feeling scared. Now the only thing I'm scared of is what's going to happen when I kill Michael Myers." Andy stared Danny straight in the eyes. "Nothing's going to happen, Danny, because you're not going to kill him." "But the Cult--" "Fuck the Cult," Andy whispered through gritted teeth. "I have an idea, but you to have to follow me on this, okay? If it works, we'll be free. Just you and me. They wanted me to be loyal to you so that I'd die for you, and it worked way too well. There aren't a lot of people I can say I care for in the world, but you? I never thought I'd say this again... but we're friends to the end. It'll be tough for a while, but if you trust me, we'll never have to deal with these guys again. Do you trust me?" "I trust you." "Good," Andy said. "You have a hidden body cam on you, just like I do, but if we whisper low, it can't pick up our voices. When we find Michael, do exactly as I say, and do it fast." * Michael Myers emerged from a shack near the river after having recharged his energy for the day after eating a few small woodland creatures, washing down their meat with their own blood. Now he was ready to find his next target. "There he is." John said from his spot on a small hill. "There he is." The robed man said as he watched through Danny's body cam. * "There you are." Jacob said from the Dreamworld where he'd found Michael, whose consciousness was always partly comatose, allowing him to not feel pain or emotion. Jacob found him wandering through a field of his dead victims, all of them staring up with their eyes open. "Maybe I can stop him from here." A hand suddenly found itself on his shoulder as Jacob turned around to stare up at a teenager looking down at him. He was blonde with a ponytail and a glazed look in his eyes. "Who are you?" Jacob asked. "Freddy sent me." Spencer said as he pulled out a knife and pushed it toward Jacob. * "This guy can't feel pain," John told Tommy as they made their way down the hill. "He just shakes it off. You saw how many rounds we put in him when we met. The .38s we brought aren't going to do dick against him." "Then we improvise and hit him with the tranqs we took from that store," Tommy said. "See that river? We get him close enough to the water and push him in. That'll buy us at least a few minutes to find Andy and run." "Uh... Tommy? I think we won't have to look far for the kid," John told him. "You said he was around 12? Reddish brown hair? Looks like he's used to life kicking him in the sack?" "Shit," Tommy said as he pulled out his gun and saw Andy walking ahead of Danny. "You head off Michael, I'll get the...kids? Who the hell is that?" "Jacob didn't mention another kid," John told him. "Looks like a double rescue mission." * "Find out who those two men are," the robed man said as watched from a van not too far away. "Send our men in as back-up to make sure they don't interfere. We're too close to our plans coming to fruition. No one can stop us now." "Uhhh... sir?" a technician asked. * Andy looked back at Danny, nodding that it was time. As they got closer to Michael, Andy pulled out his sword and swung at Michael, purposely missing as Michael punched at Andy, who pretended to get hit and fell back into the water. Danny ran toward him, intending to fall into the water himself, but Michael caught him by the throat. Andy quickly pulled off the body armor, including the body cam as he got to the surface and saw Michael choking Danny. "NO!" Andy shouted as John plunged several syringes iinto Michael's neck, forcing him to drop Danny to the ground where he fell to the firt with his eyes wide open. "Danny!" Andy started to swim toward the shore where Tommy pulled him out on the other side of the small stream. As soon as Andy was out of the water, he started punching at Tommy. "Let me go! I have to save him!" Andy shouted. "Let me go, you bastard!" "I don't have time for this," Tommy said as he punched Andy to knock him out before slinging him over his shoulder. "Come on, John, get out of there." On the other side of the stream, John saw Michael starting to struggle as John started punching at him. "Getting weak, aren't you?" John asked as he punched Michael toward the water. "This is for my aunt! This for my niece! This is for my girlfriend! This is for my friends! And this one's for my mama!" John punched Michael as hard as he could, sending Michael falling back into the stream where he disappeared under the water. John pulled out his .38 and fired every round he had into the water until he was only making clicking sounds. "JOHN! Fucking move already!" Tommy shouted with Andy over his shoulder. "Get the kid and go!" Before John could go back for Danny, the Cult's men were already all around him and fully armed, ready to open fire. ".... Shit," John said as he dived into the water and started swimming, noticing bullets hitting the water around him. Several of them hit their mark, getting his shoulder and in the side. John swam as hard as he could until he finally had to get above water where he saw Tommy running with Andy. Taking a deep breath, John ducked back under the water until he thought he was alone. He resurfaced and crawled back onto the surface, now thinking about the bullet wounds. "Oh, fuck." "Really?" Tommy asked as he grabbed John's hand. "You'd better be able to walk 'cause I'm not carrying your bitch ass." * "Is the boy alive?" the robed man asked as the doctor examining nodded. "And Andy?" "The kidnappers got away with him," another man said as the robed man nodded. "Should we pursue?" "No, I want to know who they are and why they got involved," the robed man said as he lowered his hood, revealing Dr. Sam Loomis. "Then I want to kill them slowly for interfering. We'll find Andy again. For now, get the boy back to the temple for recovery. Michael is still alive, I feel it. We'll let him go for the time being until we're ready for him to die." * In the Dreamworld. Jacob unleashed a sonic scream toward the teenager trying to kill him, sending him to his knees as Jacob punched and kicked at him until the older boy was on the ground, begging for mercy. "What do you mean, Freddy sent you?" Jacob asked. "Sent you for what?" "For him," the teenager said as he pointed to Michael. "To make sure his message got through." "What message?" Jacob asked. "The same one that I sent to the other monster," the teenager said as he laughed as he started fading away. "Oh, won't Freddy be pleased to know that you're alive." "What?" Jacob asked as he tried to keep the other boy there. "Come back! What message!?" * "You have to learn to start tranquing people," Jacob said as he tried to console Andy, even though he was tied up. Andy had a black eye while screaming and trying to break loose. "That shiner's not going away any time soon." Tommy pulled out the bullets in John's side as he tended his wounds while sitting in an old shack miles away. "John had all the tranqs we had and he needed those. Besides, we got the kid." "You didn't get Danny!" Andy shouted as he looked at Jacob. "You promised! YOU PROMISED!" "I'm sorry," Jacob told him. "We'll get him out of there, I swear." "Don't make promises we can't keep," Tommy said. "We don't know what we're up against with this cult. Plus we have bigger issues. Like why Freddy's trying to get ahold of Michael Myers, or any other monster. He said he was going after Jason the next time he wakes up, but what other monsters are there?" "Chucky," Andy told him. "He's still out there and he's searching for me. He's the reason my mom got locked up in a mental hospital." "My mom's in a psych ward, too," John told him. "Heh, maybe they're roomies." Tommy raised his head. "Son a bitch, you might be right!" "Say what?" Jacob asked as he looked at Andy. "Where's your mom now?" "Westin Hills in Springwood," Andy told him. "I haven't seen her since the trial five years ago." "That's where my mom is," John told him. "Do you think that's where Freddy's sending them? But why?" "Because my mom has to be there, too," Jacob realized. "That place is the main user of Hypnocil. Maybe-- maybe my mom's there and she's on the stuff. That's why I haven't been able to get in contact with her through my dreams. All of our moms are in Springwood." "And they're all in danger," John told him as Tommy pulled out the final bullet. "OW!" "I can't go to Springwood, I'm not ready," Jacob said. "I can't." "You have to," Tommy told him. "Freddy's going after your mom and he's got two supernatural killers on his side, maybe more. Westin Hills will be a slaughter ground unless we stop them." "The four of us?" John asked as he looked at Andy. "My mom's in trouble, I'm going," Andy said. "I have to save her." "Okay, then," Tommy told him. "Load up, gentlemen. We're going to save our moms." TO BE CONTINUED... "This cabin hasn't been used in years," John Strode said he stared down at the sleeping body of Jacob Johnson. "We should be safe here for as long as we need to stay."
"Good," Tommy Jarvis told him. "Because we're going to stay here until Jacob's well enough to go back to the U.S." "He got impaled pretty bad, but at least the hospital patched him up pretty good," John said. "As long as we keep the wounds clean and he gets plenty of rest he should be good until he's on his feet again." "Which is our next problem," Tommy said as he looked down at Jacob. "He's scared to sleep because of Freddy, but he needs to learn to use his dream powers. He's got real power, if he can harness them, we might be able to take on Freddy, Jason, and Michael Meyers." "The dude's 13, isn't that putting a little too much pressure on him?" "I was 12 when I had to kill Jason the first time," Tommy said. "And that was without powers. Jacob's the best shot we have to save people, we can't waste it." * "Why can't I wake up?" Jacob asked as he felt his bandaged chest while standing in a dark void. "Tommy? John? Anyone? Am I dead?" Jacob closed his eyes and focused on being somewhere safe. Somewhere where Freddy Krueger could never reach him. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a field that he'd never seen before, but it felt like the perfect dream. He'd never felt more at peace. "I must be dead." "No, Jacob," a voice said as he turned around to see a woman in white standing not too far away. She had dark brown hair with a white streak running down the side. "You're in a safe place now. Welcome to the Beautiful Dream." Nancy Thompson greeted him as the former victims of Freddy Krueger appeared behind her, ready to greet the new Dream Master. "You're-- you're the Dream Warriors," Jacob whispered. "But how?" "This is a safe haven for the victims of Freddy Krueger to go to after their souls were released from his body," Kristen told him. "You're Jacob, Alice's little boy. We've been waiting for you, we just didn't think you'd be here so soon." "What am I doing here?" Jacob asked. "If I'm not dead, then--" "You're high of pain killers and sleeping pills, little man." Kincaid told him. "Your body is fighting to stay alive," Kristen said. "The lack of sleep over the last few months hasn't helped. As long as you stay the hell out of Springwood you might stand a chance or recovering." "Wait, if all the victims of Freddy are here, then..." "No, your Mom's not here, she's still alive, buddy," Rick said as he emerged from the crowd. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to meet you." Jacob immediately ran into Rick's arms, hugging him tightly as tears fell down his face. "It's alright, Jacob," Rick said as he returned the embrace. "We're all safe now. This is kind of like our own little slice of Heaven. We're free here." "Is- is my Dad here?" Jacob asked. "Freddy killed him, so he must be here, right?" "Come on, I'll show you around," Rick said, ignoring the question. "We've got a lot to show you, and not a lot of time. Freddy's power is growing, and if you don't stop him, he'll get out of Springwood and go after every child in the world." "How am I supposed to stop him?" Jacob asked. "Mom couldn't stop him and she had all of your powers." "It's more than the powers," Nancy told him. "Your will needs to be greater than Freddy's. Your pureness has to be greater than his evil." "I'm not pure," Jacob told her. "I swear and I've looked at my friend's dirty magazines and this one time I tried a beer, but I didn't like it. And Tommy has weed on him that he says will relax me when I'm ready to try it. I think I kinda want to." "Those things don't make you impure," Joey told him. "Hell, we've all done those things. Looking at naked chicks was kind of my one defining trait." "Yeah, you were kind of overcompensating for being bi-sexual because you didn't want to admit you liked looking at dudes, too," Kincaid teased him. "Admit it, Joey, sneezing made your dick stiff when you were alive. Surprised you died a virgin considering you were willing to hump anything that moved." Joey just shrugged it off and lightly nodded in agreement as the group continued to lead Jacob through the field. "So Freddy really did kill all of these people?" Jacob asked as he saw the large group walking around him, all ranging from four to eighteen years old. "Freddy was killing people long before he got torched," Nancy said. "He was a mass child murderer as a human, killed dozens of kids before he got caught. A lot of them were older siblings and relatives of the Elm Street kids he started killing after he became a murderer in the Dream World." "And because we come to the Beautiful Dream the same age we are when he killed us, our older siblings are younger than us," Phillip said as a young girl walked beside him. "This is my older sister by about seven years." "And I get to come here when I die?" Jacob asked. "No," Rick said. "Because Freddy's not going to kill you. You're going to finish him for good and end up in a much better place when you die." "You said my will had to be strong," Jacob told them. "I'm not strong like any of you." "You will be," Rick promised as he put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "As long as you're here, we're going to train you, show you how to use your brain and your powers to fight him. This isn't going to be easy, Jacob. We're really going to push you until you're the best while your body heals. But by the time we're done, you're going to be ready to face Freddy with everything you've got." "Are you ready, Jacob?" Nancy asked. "... I wanna see my Dad first," Jacob told them. "I need to talk to him before I start." "He's busy somewhere else right now, kid," Kincaid told him while he looked away to avoid eye contact. "But you'll get to meet him, but you have to train first." * "Alright, kid, show me what you've got!" Taryn said as she faced Jacob with her mohawk and punk clothing while holding two switchblades. They were standing in a neon lit back alley for the lesson. "What are you going to do against Freddy's glove when he pulls it out? How do you defend yourself?" Jacob thought about and pulled out a switchblade like Taryn's. "Wrong!" Taryn shouted as she kicked the switchblade out of Jacob's hand before doing another kick to send him flying back against a wall. "That tiny little thing's not going to do squat against a bladed glove! Think larger!" Jacob pulled out a machete as Taryn grabbed a chainsaw and cut the machete in half. "Freddy's always going to try to one-up you," Taryn told him. "You have to up the ante everytime he makes a move. He pulls out a sharp blade, you pull out something that'll cut through it like butter. Your dick has to be bigger than his in a fight! How are you gonna stop him from gutting you?" Jacob started to panic as Taryn kicked him to the ground and headed toward him with the chainsaw. "Fly or die, Jacob!" Jacob tried to think, but his mind was blank with fear as the chainsaw came within an inch of his chin. "You better learn to use your imagination because Freddy won't hold back." Taryn told him. * "It's called upgrading, kid," Mark said as walked Jacob through a warehouse. "Freddy's going to upgrade to match you, so you need to be able to go on the defense to avoid him." "Upgrading?" Jacob asked. "How do I do that?" Mark quickly turned around, having upgraded to his superhero form. He held two large blasters in his hands and looked much taller and bulkier. "You just picture what you want to look like in your head and make it happen." "So I can be any superhero I want?" Jacob asked. "I can be Spider-Man? Or Superman? Or She-Ra?" Mark just stared at him. "Well, we all have our heroes, but I was thinking of something more... original. Something that comes from you. It's not just about the flashy costume, Jacob, it's about the hero that's inside you. It's like Captain Marvel, you know the DC character?" "Actually he's called Shazam now for legal reasons." Jacob corrected him. "Whatever," Mark told him. "The point is, Billy Batson says a word and he reveals the hero form that he is on the inside. That's what you have to do. Find the hero that you are on the inside and let him loose. The hero that can protect your mom, and everyone else you care about. Go ahead, give it a try." Jacob took a deep breath and closed his eyes, focusing on the hero inside as he turned around. "Uh... Jacob?" Jacob opened his eyes and found himself standing there in his underwear. He screamed and covered himself. "We'll-- we'll work on it." Mark told him. * "So, how did Freddy kill you?" Jacob asked Jesse as he stood in a field with both him and Joey. "Threw me off of a cliff in a schoolbus," Jesse told him as Joey took his hand. "Luckily my girlfri-- my ex-girlfriend survived. She was fortunate enough to get out of Springwood after I died." Jacob looked between Jesse and Joey. "Uhhhh, you mean you two are--" "We helped each other come out when we got here after our souls escaped Freddy's body," Joey told him. "It's a funny story, we'll tell you sometime, but right now we need to work on your sonic scream. I was impressed when I heard you used it to get away from Freddy, but you need to weaponize it better. The next time he might be ready to keep you quiet before you use it. I might have survived if I'd been able to use mine." "It was cute that you tried, though," Jesse said as he pinched Joey's cheek. "But he's right, if Freddy knows your power, he'll try to shut you down before you can attack. He'll put you in a spot where your abilities are useless if you're not careful." "What's your dream power?" Jacob asked as he looked at Jesse. Jesse focused as his fists caught on fire. "It's not much, but it is a defensive power." "I've been training with him, too," Joey said. "Come on, Jacob, show me what you got." Jacob cleared his throat and tried to scream, but it barely came out as a whimper. "It worked the last time," Jacob said. "I don't get it." "Maybe you just need to be motivated," Jesse said as he tossed a fireball at Jacob's feet. "Maybe it's a fear thing." "Ow, stop it!" Jacob shouted as he tried to back up. "Cut it out! I said CUT IT OUT!" A sonic scream blasted out, knocking Jesse and Joey onto their backs. "There may be hope for him yet." Joey told him. * Rick found Jacob sitting on the roof of his house in the Dream World, just staring out into The Beautiful Dream. "Kincaid and Debbie are waiting for your strength lesson," Rick said as he took a seat next to Jacob. "Are you crying?" "I suck at this," Jacob told him. "I can't use any of my powers right. Freddy's going to slaughter me." "You need to have faith in yourself," Rick said as he put an arm around Jacob. "You know I sucked at martial arts when I first started, right?" "You? No, you're the greatest, Mom showed me the home videos of you from your matches." "Those were after a few years of practice," Rick told him. "It took a long time before I started getting good, just like you are. I was younger than you when I started. Hell, I was your age before I started getting really confident. You can't give up, every child and teenager on Earth needs you to be strong enough to beat Freddy." "I don't wanna be The Dream Master," Jacob whispered. "It's too much pressure. What about what I want, Uncle Rick?" "Well, what do you want?" Rick asked. "What is it that you want the most?" "I wanna see my Dad," Jacob told him. "I want him to tell me that he loves me and that he's been watching me grow up into the man he's proud of. The man who's taking care of Mom since he's not around. Where's my Dad, Uncle Rick? Freddy killed him, he should be here." "Jacob, I don't think that--" "He's not here, is he?" Jacob asked. "Is he in Heaven? Is he in Hell? Tell me the truth, please." "Dammit, Jacob, I didn't want to tell you this early," Rick said. "I wanted you to be older and more confident in yourself." "Just tell me," Jacob pleaded with tears in his eyes. "I want to know where my Dad is." "... Freddy has him," Rick said as he stared away. "He's had him since before you were born." "How? Mom set him and Greta and Mark free," Jacob told him. "I trained with Mark, he told me what happened." "Freddy was able to recapture Dan," Rick said. "Your Dad tried to stick around just long enough to make sure you were born safely. He was going to try to stay in the Dream World so he could be with you every night when you fell asleep, but... Freddy got to him. He planned to use Dan's soul to weaken Alice, but then Alice trapped Freddy's spirit in his own house." "So where's my Dad now?" "Freddy's house," Rick said. "His soul's in there... somewhere, trapped and tortured within its walls. He's going to use your father to try to distract and weaken you when you go to face him." "Freddy's got my Dad?" Jacob asked as he stood up. "And he separated me from my Mom? This fucker's going down!" "That's the spirit we need!" Rick said. "Go get him, kid! You ready to learn to use those powers?" "I'm going to do this for my parents," Jacob told him. "Bring it on." * "Alright, kid," Kincaid said as he saw Jacob approaching. "Hit me in you think you've got--" Jacob punched Kincaid hard enough to send him through a brick wall. As he picked himself up, Kincaid laughed. "Well, shit, I think the kid's getting it!" Two Years Later For the past two years, Jacob trained harder and faster, getting better the harder he worked until he was finally able to win against every Dream Warrior against their various powers. Taryn, Kincaid, Debbie, Joey, Jesse, Mark, and every other person there had finally been defeated. Everyone, that is except Nancy. He'd even tapped into his older hero, taking an adult form that looked like a cross between his father and uncle with an outfit like the one his mother had worn in her first triumph against Freddy. Over the next two years, Jacob's body had grown in the Dream World, and the real world as well. His hair had grown longer and shaggier as he'd grown several inches. One day he found Nancy waiting for him in the field. "It's been two years," Jacob told her. "I need to go back. I'm ready to face Freddy and save my Dad." "You haven't faced your final challenge," Nancy told him. "You're not ready until you've learned to take Freddy's power from him. Fear gives him his power, if you go against him with anything less than total fearlessness, you're doomed to lose. He feeds on your fears, Jacob, that's how he was able to return. You need to be able to take back the power you gave him." "He has my Dad, how am I supposed to face him without being afraid?" Jacob asked. "I've mastered every power I have, isn't that enough?" "You've mastered every power except for the one that matters the most," Nancy told him as Jacob looked at his hand, which was starting to fade. "What the--" "Your body is ready to wake up," Nancy told him. "You're returning to the real world." "What? No! I need to learn that last power!" Jacob shouted. "Please!" "You need to master that power on your own," Nancy said. "Good luck, Jacob, take care of your new family. When you return to the living world, find Andy Barclay, he'll be able to help you face Freddy." "Wait!" Jacob shouted as he vanished from the Dream World. * Just North of the Canadian Border "Fucking Wendigos," John Strode said, covered head to toe in blood as he held an axe in his hand. Just beyond the dismembered beast stood a group of frightened hikers, all of whom had assuredly urinated themselves in fear. John could actually smell the odor standing in the updraft. "That was the only one around here as far I can tell, so you should be safe." The group continued to stand frozen as John just walked away calmly as if he'd done nothing more than swatted away a gnat for them. * John returned to the cabin he was sharing with Tommy Jarvis and the still comatose Jacob Johnson. The cabin was deep in the woods of a Canadian forest, one which one involved many twists and turns to find. A series of discrete markers guided the way, one that taken months for the two to learn without having to use a map. As he opened the door, Tommy stood with his back to him while washing the dishes. "What did we talk about when it came to coming home with bloody clothes?" Tommy sighed without turning his head. "How'd you know?" John asked as he started stripping down. "I know what blood smells like," Tommy told him. "Especially when you're covered in gallons of it." John scooped up his bloody clothes and carried them through the door. "Yeah, well I'm still not used to the whole murdering monsters thing," John said as he dropped the clothes in a hamper to be washed later that day. "I thought we'd be going back to the States by now." "Jacob's still not awake." Tommy told him. "It's been two years," John told him as headed to the bedroom to put on some clothes. "Meanwhile we've been living off the land, killing our dinner and going without alcohol. The only trips we ever make to the outside world is for medication for the kid. Tommy, he's not waking up. We should just..." "We're not letting him die," Tommy said bitterly. "I made a promise to his mother. He's still alive, and he's going to wake up, he just needs more time. As soon as he's back with me, we'll go back to the States and start tracking down Michael Myers to finish him. Then we'll face Freddy, and Jason and whoever else gets in our way." "And what if he's already gotten to my Mom?" John asked. "I told you, I have people," Tommy told him. "If your Mom was in trouble, the cell phone I keep charged would ring three times, then hang up. If it rings four times and hangs up, we've found Alice. Five times... Jason's back. The cell phone hasn't rang once since we've been here. Your Mom is safe, I promise. Get dressed, dinner's almost ready. The venison should be ready to eat in an hour." "Always meant to ask this, but where did you learn to kill and cook animals?" John asked. "When you're on the run, you learn to survive or you die," Tommy told him with a sadness in his voice. "And I learned to survive." * Jacob gasped as he sat up, seeing he was in an unfamiliar place. "Jacob?" Tommy asked as he ran into the room. "You're awake!" "Andy Barclay," Jacob said as he threw the covers off of him. "We have to find Andy Barclay." "Who?" Tommy asked as he tried to keep Jacob on the bed. "Slow down, cowboy, you've been in a come for two years, you're going to have atrophy and--" Jacob quickly stood up with no effort and looked at Tommy. "Get me a pair of shoes, already. I know where the next member of our team is, but we have to hurry, I think he's in trouble." "What's going on?" John asked as he looked into the room. "Why are you standing up?" "John, get the truck ready! Jacob, who the fuck is Andy?" "I think it's the kid we talked about from the news before we went to find John," Jacob told him. "The killer doll kid. We need to track him down now." "Whoa, hang on," Tommy told him. "You just woke up. You've been in a coma for two years." "Which is why we're running out of time to find Andy," Jacob said. "And... to save my Dad. It's a long story, but he's out there and we need to save him." "Okay," John told them as he ate some venison. A hungry Jacob yanked it out of his hand and started ripping it apart with his teeth. "I think you need to tell us everything, kid. Start at the beginning." * Haddonfield, Illinois In an underground catacomb, a man in a black robe waited, his face shrouded in mystery as an underling approached him. "Bring me the boy." Soon, Andy Barclay walked into the room, dressed in all black. His hair had grown longer and he had a large sword on his back. He quickly kneeled before the robed man, staring at the ground. "What is your purpose?" "To protect the Chosen One." "And how far will you go to protect him?' "I will lay down my life," Andy said. "The Chosen One's life is all that matters. My life means nothing in the grand scheme of the cult." "He's ready," the robed man said. "Michael Myer's time has ended. It's time for the new Chosen One to ascend. A new day begins for the Cult of Thorn, and it begins with the death of Michael Myers." TO BE CONTINUED... The doors to the Playpals Toy Factory opened up at 5:00 a.m. on a Tuesday morning, but the night shift employees weren't walking out; a teenage girl and her foster brother were the only ones exiting. As the sun hit them in the eyes as they emerged, the boy only had one question for the girl who'd come to his rescue.
"Where are we going?" Andy Barclay asked. "Home." the blonde teenage girl replied. "Where's home?" "Andy, I have no idea." Kyle told him as they headed off, not knowing what lay ahead for either of them. Inside the factory, among the carnage and dead bodies sat a pile of plastic in the shape of a doll's body where the head had been exploded. The body sat motionless, although one of its eyes had landed in a nearby vat of plastic, sinking into the hot mess that would soon produce hundreds of Good Guy dolls. Less than an hour later, the head of the first Good Guy doll from that batch of melted plastic emerged, giving an evil smile before it had even received eyes, or even a body... * Six Months Later "Come on," Andy Barclay said as he tried to get the lock on the basement door open. He'd been trapped down there for two days with no food or water and it felt like his captor wasn't going to return anytime soon. He didn't have too much longer before he would be completely dehydrated so he had to act now. The 9-year-old foster child had found a paper clip, and after bending it out of shape, figured it could be his only means of escape. "Almost got it..." Andy finally got the door open, carefully pushing it open to not alert anyone as he quietly made his way to the kitchen where hopefully the door would be unlocked. His shoes were upstairs, but he had no time to fetch them, so he'd have to leave in just a pair of socks. He just needed to get as far away from the house as possible. Andy grabbed a backpack from the chair and headed to the refrigerator to start pulling in all the food he could that wouldn't spoil immediately. He had to escape into the night and didn't know where he would end up, but at least he'd have something to eat. The boy made his way to the back door when the light came on and Andy froze. He was surely going to suffer now. "Who let you out of the basement?" Andy's foster father said. Andy was only a monthly stipend for him, and as long as Andy continued breathing the old man figured he could do whatever he pleased with the boy, up and including abusing and torturing him within an inch of his life. "This time I'll handcuff your pathetic ass to the radiator. You think you can run away, boy? Where would you go? No one cares about you, not even your own mother." "Shut-up," Andy told him. "Don't talk about my mom." "She's an insane lunatic, and the bitch is probably glad to be rid of you," the man said as he got closer to Andy. "I'll throw your ass down those stairs, maybe I'll get lucky and you'll break your leg." As the man got closer, a knife reached from under the dark shadows of the table and cut his achilles. The man screamed in pain as he fell to the floor as a red-headed Good Guy doll emerged from the darkness, holding a sharp kitchen knife in his hand. "I really like your style, chief, but unfortunately you're fucking with something that belongs to me," Chucky said with an evil grimace as he turned to the boy paralyzed with fear at the front door. "I'll be with you in a moment, Andy, then you can be tortured by a professional." The doll turned toward the man, who screamed as Chucky started stabbing him again and again until he fell back against the wall in a bloody mess while his murderer laughed insanely. "You know, I think of myself as a creative person when it comes to murder, but sometimes you just gotta go with the classics," Chucky said as he saw Andy had already ran out the door and into the night. "Oh, for fuck's sake. You can't run forever, Andy! I've got all the time in the world now, I'll find you. After all, we're friends to the end." "Just have to keep running," Andy said with fear in his voice as he ran down the street as fast as he legs could take him. "Just have to run as far as I can, then start crawling when I can't run anymore. I won't let him get me. I won't let him hurt me anymore." It was then that Andy ran headfirst into the back of a taller man. He slowly turned around and gave Andy the creepiest stare imaginable. "Andy Barclay," the man said in a low tone that indicated that he knew who Andy was, although the boy had never seen this man in his life.. "I guess it is a small city. You never know just who you'll run into." He started to reach for Andy, who just turned around and started running in the opposite direction. He didn't get far as he felt something sting his neck. He reached and felt a dart sticking out, having injected him with something. He started to stumble as he tried to run, but a few seconds more and the boy fell to his knees before collapsing on the street. As Andy's vision started to blur, the man and a few others surrounded him. "This is the one," the man said as Andy's vision started getting darker before he passed out, but not before noticing a thorn shaped tattoo on the man's wrist. "He's going to be a great addition to our little family." * My name is John Strode, and this is my story about how The Shape screwed up my life. You're probably thinking 'Strode'? Wasn't your last name 'Tate' two years ago? Yeah, I took my Mom's real last name again after that night, it felt right to call myself a Strode after that. Halloween night two years ago was when I last saw my Mom. She hated that day, and I was never allowed to celebrate it, never truly understanding why we had to be afraid of the Boogeyman one day a year. I thought my Mom was just paranoid, but then the day came when I learned that The Shape existed. He killed my best friend as well as several other people that night, and all to kill my mother and me. His name is Michael Myers and he wants to kill the entire family bloodline. It started with my aunt when Michael was just six years old. Ever since Michael has gone through my entire family, including my half-sister Jamie. The last I'd heard only my nephew Stephen and my cousin Danny were still alive, but had gone off the grid after Danny's mother had been found murdered, presumably by Michael. The only survivors the night Michael found us were me, my Mom, a security guard and my girlfriend Molly. We were instructed to go get help and wait for my Mom... but she never came. The fight with Michael had broken her mentally to the point where she had hallucinated that she'd killed Michael, although they never found the body. They put my Mom into a mental ward and I wasn't allowed contact with her, and only got one phone call. She told us to run, so we did. And I've been running ever since. But I've also been preparing, knowing that one day Michael would find me. And I would be ready for him. I'm going to kill him and drag his body in so they'll have no choice but to let my Mom go and we can be a family again... * California October 18th Molly Cartwell returned to her family home after attending her college courses. She'd moved back home a year and a half ago, not being able to handle life off the grid with her former boyfriend John Strode. She still cared for him, but didn't want to run for the rest of her life from her boyfriend's murderous uncle. As Molly returned to the house after a long day, she noticed the door had been slightly open. "Mom? Dad?" Molly asked as she walked into the living room. "Are you home? Greg?" As Molly stood there, the door quietly closed as Michael Myers stood silently in the background. He calmly walked into the next room before Molly could notice him. "Why was the door open?" Molly asked as she turned around, seeing the door had been closed. A chill ran down her spine as she slowly headed upstairs to her bedroom, but not before getting a stick of pepper spray out of her purse just to be safe. She saw her bedroom door open and the room torn apart, immediately suspecting her younger brother. Papers had been tossed about and everything she owned lay scattered on the floor. "GREG!" Molly shouted as she saw the letters she had received from John under an assumed name laying on the bed. John had been careful not to reveal anything major to her, just that he missed her and hoped that she was safe. The envelopes all had a New Jersey post office marking on them. "Greg, you little monster!" Molly shouted as she charged toward her younger brother's bedroom and kicked open the door, gasping in horror. Her 12-year-old brother had been propped in a chair near the door with his head completely caved in with a bloody baseball bat in his hands. "Oh God..." Molly ran toward the stairs, tripping and tumbling down them. She landed at the bottom of the stairs and sat up to realize her parents were sitting on the couch facing away from her. She got up, finding her ankle had been twisted as she made her way towards them. "Greg's dead!" Molly shouted as she got to the front of the couch to see her parent's throats had been slashed. Their dead stares just facing ahead at nothing as Molly screamed in terror as she backed away before bumping into The Shape who stood right behind her. She slowly turned around and had to tilt her head to get the full view of the towering man. "You..." Michael went to stab her, but Molly got out of striking distance and tried to limp for the door. She reached it, finding it was locked as Michael's knife went through her back, through her body and into the front door. Michael pulled the knife out as Molly's dying body slid to the floor. "You'll... never find him." Molly said as Michael grabbed her by the hair, opening the door and putting her head in it before slamming the door as hard as he could several times until he was sure that John Strode's girlfriend was no more. The killer calmly walked out of the house and began making his way toward his true target... * October 29th It had been a particularly chilly week in late October, and Tommy Jarvis had wished that he'd brought a heavier coat for his errand. But there was a 13-year-old kid waiting for what he had in the brown paper bag and he meant to deliver what he'd promised. Tommy and his young charge had holed up in an abandoned tenement building for a while so they could plan their next move. The last six months had been primarily about getting Jacob ready for the road ahead. Jacob Johnson had come from a comfortable home with a loving mother and no real stress in his life. Then a dark force named Freddy Krueger took all of that away, forcing Jacob to flee his home town of Springwood with a vow to return when he got old enough to fight Freddy on equal footing. But what should have been an easy goal to turn Jacob into a strong confidant young Dream Master soon became a nightmare when Jacob refused to sleep, causing exhaustion and mood swings. Fearing the worst, Tommy sought out a solution to help the boy, resulting in him committing a few acts of felony. Well, a few more acts of felony. Tommy entered the apartment with a heater plugged into the wall to keep the place from getting too cold. There was no furniture in the place, only what few belongings they had as well as empty food containers and soda cans sitting all over. The duo had been on the road constantly as Tommy, having committed earlier said acts of felony (all in the name of keeping the world safe from monsters like Jason), had become a wanted man. Jacob, who'd grown about two inches since he left Springwood, sat on the couch with a laptop when Tommy came through the door. Not saying a word, Tommy tossed the bag to Jacob. Over the last six months, the two had moved from place to place to keep ahead of the police while they tried to find new members for their party. While some had shown interest, but were still unsure, others had flat out refused to follow Tommy on what was obviously a suicide mission. "You wouldn't believe what I had to go through to get this," Tommy said as he took his coat off. "Don't OD on this shit like you did the caffeine pills, we can't afford another hospital visit, not after the last time you passed out. Someone reported you missing, so you're on the law's radar too, now." "My grandparents on my Dad's side. Always trying to take custody away from my mom, saying she's an unfit parent. This is probably the ammo they need to get guardianship," Jacob said as he took the pill bottle out and smiled a little. "Modafinil? You actually got it. I didn't think this stuff actually existed. How'd you get it? I mean, Hypnocil might have worked too, but this stuff? Holy shit!" "A lot of wheeling and dealing is how I got it," Tommy said as he sat down on the couch. "You find our guy?" "Took a while to find the bread crumbs, but I got him," Jacob said. "This guy didn't just go off the grid, he took a flying leap. Whoever taught him to cover his tracks was good. He didn't want anyone to find him." "How soon can we get to him?" "If we leave now we can be there on Halloween morning." Jacob said as he swallowed two of the pills along with a can of soda. "You know, maybe you can start using those powers of yours to help locate some of these guys," Tommy suggested. "You do need to start practicing." "That means sleeping," Jacob told him. "I never want to sleep again. With these pills i can stay up a solid two days at a time, a quick nap, just enough to reset myself and then I'll be back in business." "What about fighting Freddy?" Tommy asked. "I'll find my Mom and give her the powers back, she's the only one who can do this. I can't fight him, Tommy, I'm not the hero she is. We need her." * October 30th John Strode, now under the assumed name of Brandon Farmer, had just finished a long day of construction to keep food on the table. John had taken to working odd jobs where he'd been paid under the table so as to not create any paper trails that could be traced back to him. Between construction jobs, John hustled pool in town, fleecing out-of-towners at the local bar. That night before he headed home, John stopped at the range for a quick round of target practice. It couldn't hurt to fire off a few rounds to let out his frustration against the world of solitude he now lived in. Returning home to a secluded house in the woods that was virtually impossible to find as it been far off from the main roads, John unlocked the several locks on the door and entered his home before making sure all of the locks were resecured. After getting a shower in, John grabbed a beer from the fridge and the shotgun from the armory in the closet and took a seat on the front porch swing and waited. This was John's nightly routine for the last year and a half. He had no friends; he had no social life; his high school girlfriend Molly had left him after six months of living underground, not wanting to live her life in hiding. But they'd had no choice. The Shape was now aware of John's existence and he'd do everything in his power to kill John and anyone connected to him. * "John, you can't contact me ever again," Laurie Strode said as John talked to her on the phone weeks after she'd been admitted to the asylum. After The Shape had crashed the ambulance he'd been in and vanished, Laurie had to be restrained as she was insistent of tracking down her brother to finish him. Laurie's mental state after learning that her brother had escaped didn't help. "He's going to try to find you. You have to run. You have to hide. You can't contact me here, you can't contact anyone you knew. Friends, family, he'll go through them all to find you. If you want to keep everyone safe you'll disappear." "But Mom, I can't leave you," John told her as he stood at the bus station. "I love you." "I know, baby, I love you, too," Laurie told him. "Don't worry, I'll find you someday when this is over. But for now, we have to say goodbye. Stay safe, baby. We'll meet again." * "Don't worry, Mom, I'll kill him myself and get you out of that place," John said as he took a drink. "I'll get him for you." * "Why are we stopping at a motel?" Jacob asked as the duo walked through the door. "I'm going to be awake for at least 40 hours once I take the pills after a quick ten minute nap." "You might not need sleep, but I do," Tommy said as he fell onto his bed face first. "Go watch some... porn or something. Just keep it down." "Great role model I have here," Jacob said as he kicked off his shoes and sat on his bed, grabbing the t.v. remote. "And for the record, I'm not interested in watching 'porn'. Let's see what this motel has to offer for entertainment, maybe some cartoons or something. 'The Jizzer of Oz', 'Bill & Ted's Anal Adventure', 'Ghostfisters', 'Backdoor Sluts to the Future'... aaaand it's nothing but porn. Tommy, I'm going for a walk." Tommy had already fallen asleep as Jacob left the room to walk around. * A few blocks away at the construction site where John had been working for the last few weeks, the foreman's office trailer had been broken into. The filing cabinet had been torn apart and the desk rummaged to find certain information. Just as a folder with 'Brandon's' information had been found, the door opened and a heavy set man entered wearing a hard hat. The foreman had worked late that night on some light construction and was getting ready to head home when he headed to the trailer to retrieve his jacket. "What the hell happened in here?" the man asked as a tall shadowy figure slowly emerged from behind the door. * Jacob had wandered pretty far from the motel. With the pills he'd taken minutes earlier taking full effect, he wasn't the least bit tired and wanted to check out the town to see if there were any restaurants open for a quick bite before he returned to Tommy. As Jacob passed by the construction site, the foreman fell at his feet, having been stabbed several times in the back. At this point he was coughing up blood and near death as the teenager tried to help him. "Oh my God," Jacob said, wishing he had a cell phone right now. "What happened?" "Attacked...in trailer," the man said as he died on the sidewalk. A panicked Jacob stood up and stared at the trailer, wondering what was in there. He slowly approached it, not knowing what to expect. It could just be a thief, or it could one of the monsters that Tommy was telling him that he'd have to face. The answer came walking out of the door as Jacob swallowed hard. "... Fuck." As Jacob realized who it was, Michael stared directly at the boy, who could feel his soul freezing from the eye contact. It was at that moment that Jacob could feel what true evil was, like a psychic exchange. Snapping himself out of it, Jacob started running back to the motel. * Tommy was finally having a nice dream that didn't involve Jason as Jacob ran through the door, slamming it as he hid under the bed. "Where have you been?" Tommy asked as he bolted up his bed. "You okay?" "You know the guy we came here to find?" Jacob asked. "Yeah?" "You know the monster that's been after him?" "... Yeah." "I saw him, and I think he knows where John is." Tommy jumped off the bed and dropped to his knees to look under the bed. "Are you sure it was The Shape?" "I've never felt so cold in my life," Jacob told him. "I think my powers could sense him. It's like he's... pure evil. I could feel how cold he was. It was like he didn't have a soul, but was trying to take part of mine." "Then we have to find John Strode before he does," Tommy said. "I know you don't want to, but you have no choice, kid. You need to find this guy with your powers before The Shape gets to him." "But I took those pills, it'll be at least a few days before I can even think about sleeping." Jacob told him. "Well, there is one way," Tommy said as he sucker punched Jacob as hard as he could to knock him out. "Sorry, kid." * 12-year-old John Strode looked out the window at the other kids in the neighborhood who had dressed up in costumes to have fun on Halloween. His ever vigilant mother had a shotgun by her side as she sat in the living room as if she expected someone to drop by. "This is more normal than what I was expecting," Jacob said as he saw John. "John? I know this is going to sound weird, but you're in danger." "I know," John whispered. "I never believed it until I saw him for myself. Mom was right the entire time and I always thought it was some big lie to keep me from having a life with my friends. But he exists and he wants me dead." "He knows where you are," Jacob told him. "But me and my friend can help, you just have to tell me where you are so we can get to you." "What's the point? Maybe he should just kill me," John told him. "I'm tired of hiding. I'm tired of being scared. I've already lost the woman I loved and my mother. I don't have anything left." "John, you need to snap out of this," Jacob told him. "You can put an end to this guy once and for all. It can end tonight, but we need to know where you are." John just looked over at him, taking a deep breath. * Tommy dropped Jacob into a bathtub of ice cold water to wake him up. Jacob jumped up, breathing heavily as Tommy grabbed him a towel. "So?" "I need some dry clothes, I know where he is," Jacob told him. "It's not a far drive from here." * Tommy drove his truck as fast as he could, not realizing that he was being followed as he drove according to Jacob's directions. After an hour of driving, the duo finally arrived at John's hidden cabin in the woods. The truck came to a stop as the two headed toward the front door, where John waited with a shotgun to greet them. "It's cool!" Jacob shouted as he threw his hands up. "We're friends!" "You're the kid from my dream," John said, still keeping the gun aimed. "Who the hell are you?" "We'll explain everything," Tommy told him. "But The Shape knows where you are. He raided the construction site and killed your foreman for your address." "Bullshit, they don't have my address," John told them. "No one does except you two apparently. I've gone totally, completely and utterly off the grid. I haven't even written any useful information down about myself in two years," the sound of a car heading toward the house was heard in the distance. "No. You two fucking idiots led him right to me!" "How is that possible?" Jacob asked. "How did he know we were looking for you?" "Maybe the psychic thing works both ways," Tommy suggested. "You sensed his evil and he sensed your goodness. He knew to trail you back to the motel, that's why he didn't try to kill you there. If we hadn't come to town..." "He'd have never found John here," Jacob whispered. "John, I--" "Shutup and get in the house!" John shouted. "He can't get in, the doors are reinforced! It'd take a tank to get in here." The trio ran into the house where John closed and locked the door. He opened a closet and revealed an arsenal of guns. "Take your pick," John told them. "I hope your aim's good." "I can hold my own," Tommy said as he grabbed a sawed-off shotgun. "I've had my own boogeyman to practice for." Jacob grabbed a .38 and loaded it. "I'm still learning, but I can hit a target if it gets close enough." "Good," John told them. "Shoot to kill the fucker, and if he goes down, you keep shooting until the barrel's empty. Then reload and do it again. Lather, rinse and repeat until we've gone through every bullet in this place. I want him so full of lead that we can use him as a pencil afterward." "Alright, I guess this is it," Tommy said as he stared out the window. "Think he'll just walk up to the door and try to get in?" "Good luck," John laughed. "I've spent every dime my mom left me fortifying this place. Every entrance is sealed and I have alarms in place in case someone does get in. No one's getting in here unless they have a bulldozer." "How about a speeding Porsche?" Jacob asked as he saw a car not too away picking up speed. "Uh... why isn't he slowing down?" "He isn't." Tommy said. "He is." John told him. "Where did he even get a license?" Jacob asked. "I take it the walls aren't reinforced like the doors are?" "It was my to do list!" John shouted. "Run!" Tommy shouted as he grabbed Jacob and got him out of the way just as the stolen car rammed through the wall and plowed into the living room, coming to a stop halfway between the front room and kitchen. Tommy, Jacob and John were spread out of the floor, covered in dust in debris. John looked up as the door opened and Michael Myers stepped out, not even scratched by the car's collision. He immediately spotted John and stood there for a moment as he started walking toward him. "Guys?" John asked as he realized his leg had been pinned down by the debris. "Now would be a good time to do that thing you came here to do!" As the Shape got closer, a shotgun blast to the leg sent him to the ground as Tommy stood up. "Good to see that he's vulnerable to bullets. Let's test that pencil theory." As Tommy was about to fire again, he noticed a pool of blood under Jacob, who had been impaled on a piece of wood. "Oh, God. Jacob!" Michael was starting to get up as Tommy rammed the butt of the gun into his face to put him back down. "What are you doing?" John asked. "Finish him!" "Jacob's hurt!" Tommy shouted. "We have to get him to a hospital!" "But we have him!" John shouted. "We can finish him!" "If we don't help Jacob, then he's finished!" Tommy shouted as he picked Jacob up. "I know you want to kill this bastard, but we need this kid more!" Tommy put Jacob on the couch as he pulled John out from under the debris, just as Michael was starting to pick himself up. John fired more rounds into him until the gun was empty as he looked at Tommy, who'd picked up Jacob again and was carrying him out of the door. "Next time, Uncle Michael," John told him. "Next time we end this for good." * Hours later, Jacob lay in a hospital bed with his chest bandaged while hooked to an IV. "He's going to need rest, Tommy," John told him. "We can still track down The Shape and finish him while he's safe here." "No," Tommy said. "We're getting Jacob and getting out of here before the cops come. Like you, we're not exactly on the grid. I'm pretty sure Jacob's already been reported missing by his grandfather, and I'm not exactly beloved by law enforcement. We need to sneak him out of here. The second the hospital finds out we used a fake name and identification, we're screwed." "Sneak him out of here?" John asked. "Michael Myers is already gunning for me, what if Jacob slows us down or gets worse?" "He needs the rest," Tommy said. "He'll heal in his own time as long as we stay out of Springwood. I can take care of him, I know how to score meds and stuff to keep him going. Meanwhile, you need a place to hide, so I suggest you stick with me. You help us kill monsters like Michael Myers and we'll help you kill your monster when we're strong enough to face him." "On one condition," John told him. "That you help me contact my mom so she knows what's going on. She said I can't contact her because Michael Myers might be watching, but she didn't say anything about a friend." "Yeah, okay, I can do that. But meanwhile, we need to tend to Jacob. We need a place to take him so he can recover." "We'll head north," John suggested. "My girlfriend's family has a small cabin in Canada. We can lay low there for a while so the kid can heal and you can fill me in on just what the hell your deal is." "Okay," Tommy told him. "Create a distraction while I get Jacob out of here and we'll be on our way." * Fifteen minutes later, Tommy's truck raced out of the hospital parking lot. John held Jacob tight in the passenger seat as Tommy focused on the road. "With all those rounds you unloaded into him, he should be down for a while, right?" Tommy asked. "You'd think so, but he shrugs off bullets like they were nothing," John said. "I don't think he feels pain. He might even get off on it. He was probably up minutes after we bolted." "Well, he won't be able to find us in Canada," Tommy said. "But... what about your mom?" "He doesn't know where to find her," John said. "And even if he does, she can hold her own. In fact, she might even be ready for him. So, how long do you figure we'll be staying in Canada?" "Until Jacob's on his feet again," Tommy told him as he stared at the boy, who was desperately trying to stay awake with the meds he'd been given coursing through his body. "However long that takes." "Jacob, buddy, get some rest," John said. "You need to sleep this off." "Can't sleep," Jacob told him in a groggy voice. "Need to stay awake. Where are my pills?" "God dammit, Jacob, just get some rest," Tommy ordered. "I should have never gotten you those pills. You're going to die if you don't sleep. Hell, you might die if you mix those pills with the medication you need to get better." "If I sleep, I'll dream," Jacob begged him as his voice trembled. "Don't make me dream." "... Fuck," Tommy said with a defeated sigh, knowing what he had to do now. "John, give him the pills. It's the red bottle in the glovebox." John gave Jacob two pills and a sip of soda. "Wait, the Modafinil is the orange-- What did you give me?" Jacob asked as he started getting even more drowsy. "Sleeping pills," Tommy said. "Sorry, kid, but you need to sleep to get better. See you when you wake up." "You mother fu--" Jacob started to say as he passed out. * Springwood Alice Johnson carried her lunch tray to the table and sat down inbetween two women. "There's no sign of Andy," Alice whispered. "Or Tommy or Jacob. If they're out there, they're all staying off the grid, but we'll find them and make sure they're safe. Unfortunately we can't stop taking Hypnocil or else Freddy will realize what's going on, otherwise I could reach Jacob through his dreams." "Our boys are in trouble, I can sense it. We need to help them. Andy's been missing for six months. What if Chucky got him?" "Then Lakeshore Strangler copycat murders would be all over the news," Alice reminded her. "It's like Chucky's been laying low as well. He's waiting for something." "Trouble's coming for us," Laurie Strode said as she looked at Karen Barclay and Alice Johnson as they sat at the table. "The monsters are trying to hurt our boys. Maybe it's time we showed these bastards that you don't fuck with our babies." TO BE CONTINUED... My name is Tommy Jarvis, and when I was 12 years old, my life took a turn for the tragic. A masked murderer named Jason Voorhees killed my mom and then tried to kill me and my sister. But I knew how to get inside his head. How to make him question everything he knew long enough to put him down with his own machete. But in the process of killing Jason, I ended up killing a part of myself as well. The fun loving kid who liked to create scary alien masks and toys died that night. All that was left with an orphaned kid that knew that true evil existed. Which is why I had to be ready for when Jason returned...
When I was 17, I thought he'd come back for me. Someone started killing the kids and counselors at a halfway house for the mentally ill that I'd been assigned to. I couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't anymore, everytime I looked in the mirror, I saw... him. People were dying all around me and I knew it would only be a matter of time before he came for me. In the end, the killer turned out to be a copycat, but I was still broken. So broken that I nearly turned into the next Jason. Luckily I came to my senses before I harmed anyone, but I knew that for my own sanity, I'd have to make sure Jason Voorhees never came back. In hindsight, digging up his grave during an electrical storm and shoving a metal spike through his heart wasn't the best idea. A lightning bolt revived him, turning Jason into an undead, and virtually unstoppable killing machine. He came back, and I thought I'd stopped him for good by putting him into a watery grave, but I knew that wouldn't last. I knew that one day, Jason would return, and I'd have to be ready. Soon I'd discover that there were others out there like me. People who were terrorized by monsters like Jason. Monsters that would stop at nothing to murder everyone in their path. A dream stalker in Springwood; a killer doll in Chicago; a deadly gingerbread cookie in Texas; a Leprechaun in North Dakota, and dozens of others. Maybe if I could help kill these creatures, maybe I could regain a small piece of myself. But I couldn't do it alone, I'd need help. And that's when it hit me: I'd gather the survivors of these horrific events and form a team. A team that would end these nightmares, and then one day, when Jason came back, I wouldn't be alone in my quest. I could finally put Jason Voorhees back into the ground permanently. But where to start? I'd heard the rumors of a woman in Springwood called 'The Dream Master', who had the power to control her dreams. I'd start there, hoping that she could help me control my nightmares of Jason... * Springwood "My karate teacher says that I'm one of the best students he's ever had. If I work hard enough I can have my black belt in two years," the brunette headed boy said as he sat between two headstones that read 'Dan Jordan' and 'Rick Johnson'. "Mom says that it'll take a long time before I'm as good as you, Uncle Rick." Jacob Johnson reached into his backpack and pulled out a Japanese head bandana. "Mom said that this was yours when you were alive," Jacob told him. "I'm going to take good care of it for you. It's my most prized possession." Jacob looked down at his watch and stood up. "Gotta get going, but I'll be back to see you both soon. Love you, Dad. Love you, Uncle Rick!" As Jacob started running home, a newspaper flew by on the wind with the headline 'More Pre-Natal Deaths Hit Springwood'. * Tommy stood in the Springwood Library, looking through the occult section. He'd read pretty much every book they had in stock in other places around the country. He finally just randomly grabbed a copy of 'Voodoo for Dummies' and took it up to the counter where the head librarian was checking in the returned books. Tommy sat the book on the counter and stared at her, noticing her aged look and tired bags under her eyes. She looked far older than her 30 years. "Alice Johnson?" Tommy asked. "Can I help you?" "More than you know," Tommy told her. "I need to ask you a question about Freddy Krue--" Alice quickly grabbed Tommy by the ear and dragged him to an empty meeting room. She closed the door and turned to stare at him. "You DO NOT say that name in this town," Alice said in an angered tone. "This town has had twelve years of peace. Every night for twelve years I work my ass off to make sure that... he stays sealed away. I won't have some random stranger coming in and messing things up. Just saying that name spreads fear. If you're here to start trouble, I suggest you leave now." "I'm sorry," Tommy told her. "It's just... I need your help. There are other monsters out there, killing people and ruining lives. I'm putting together a team to fight them and--" "You want me to join," Alice said. "I can't. I have to face my monster every night to make sure he stays put. If he gets out, then every child and teenager in this town will die. I have to fight him every night so he doesn't get stronger. I have to continually erase my son's memory every time he comes to try to feed on his fear. I chose to stay in Springwood to keep him locked away, I can't leave just to play hero." "Why not just kill Fr-- him?" "Because he won't stay dead," Alice admitted. "Everytime you think he's dead he finds a way back. So the next best alternative is to keep him weak and locked away. Now if you'll excuse me, my shift is over and I need to get home to my son." Tommy sighed in defeat and handed her a piece of paper. "My number, I'll be in town for at least another day. Call me if you change your mind." "Trust me, I won't. Good day." Alice said as she walked out the door. * Alice returned home to the house she grew up in, which she now lived in with her 12-year-old son Jacob. Her father had passed away in his sleep four years ago, dying peacefully. Alice was grateful that he'd at least gotten to know his grandson for the first eight years of his life. Jacob had already started preparing dinner, and had been in the process of setting the table when his mother walked in. "Dinner's almost ready, Mom," Jacob told her. "I made spaghetti." "You know, I should be the one making dinner for you," Alice said as she kissed the top of his head. "You already do too much around the house." "I only cook, clean, take care of the bills and wait for the cable guy," Jacob said as Alice looked at him. "I only skipped school that once for it." "You still need to start taking it easy," Alice said as she sat down. "Maybe it's time we did what we discussed." "You mean--?" "This weekend we'll clear out the garage and you can turn it into your personal work out space like your Uncle Rick had," Alice told him. "We'll get his exercise equipment out of storage." "Really?" Jacob asked as he hugged her. "Thank you!" "But you have to keep up your grades and your regular chores." Alice said. "I'm already a straight A student and I do my chores anyway." "Okay, then," Alice said as she hugged him. "Let's eat." * Tommy sat in the library, reading through news articles on the computer. He'd managed to keep Jason at the bottom of Camp Crystal Lake, maybe there was a way to keep the Springwood Slasher contained so that Alice could help him. "No mysterious teenager or child deaths in the last twelve years," Tommy said to himself as he scrolled through the articles. "Wait a minute..." Tommy happened a series of articles over the last five years about mysterious pre-natal and newborn deaths in the area, just spread far enough apart so that no one would connect them. Tommy started a new Google search minutes later... * "Put the comic books away, it's time for bed." Alice Johnson told her 12-year-old son Jacob as he sat on his bed reading a 'Tales From the Crypt' comic while in his pajamas of a pair of sweatpants and a 'Silver Shamrocks' t-shirt he's inherited from his Uncle Rick. In fact, virtually everything in Jacob's bedroom had come from Rick, not that Alice didn't buy things for him, but Jacob relished living in his Uncle's old room, not wanting to replace a single item. He'd grown up on stories about Rick as told to him by his grandfather. Rick Johnson was the boy's personal idol, despite the two having never met. "Aw, mom, I don't have school tomorrow, can't I stay up late?" Jacob asked as he got under the blankets. "You need your rest, you're a growing boy," Alice said as she tucked him in. "And don't think I haven't noticed that you've been staying up late anyway." "Because I keep having bad dreams about the man in the sweater," Jacob told her. "If I go to sleep, he's going to be there. He really creeps me out just... standing there watching me." "Baby, we've had this discussion before, the man in the sweater isn't real, don't be afraid of him," Alice said as she kissed his forehead. "As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you. Want me to keep the door open?" "Just a crack," Jacob said as Alice turned off the light. "'Night, Mom." Alice closed the door, leaving it open slightly as Jacob rolled over and tried not to fall asleep while yawning. The more he tried to stay awake, the more futile it became as his eyes started getting heavy, finally closing. After a few seconds, a noise caused Jacob to bolt up wide awake. And that's when the boy realized he wasn't in his comfy bed at home. He was sitting in an unkept yard with tall grass, a cracked sidewalk and dilapidated fencing. Jacob slowly turned his head to the sound of three little girls in white dresses playing jumprope a few feet away. "One, two, Freddy's coming for you. Three, four, better lock your door." Jacob knew he had to be dreaming as he stood up, but he could feel the cold, wet grass under his bare feet as he backed away. This was no ordinary dream, this time things felt different, like he wasn't in charge. "Five, six, grab your crucifix. Seven, eight, better stay up late..." As Jacob slowly backed away, he felt a door behind him. He slowly turned to see he was standing on the doorstep of the condemned Krueger residence. The house he'd been warned against going to, even being restricted from going down the same street as the old house. "Nine, ten, never sleep again." The door slowly creaked open as Jacob turned his head to see the girls were gone, replaced by two Rottweilers with human faces. The dogs shrieked at Jacob as they started rushing toward him. Jacob panicked and rushed into the house, closing the door behind him before the dogs could reach him. He could hear the dogs growling as well as the vibration of the door as the dogs scratched against it. "Come on, Jacob, wake up," Jacob said as he slapped himself a few times. "I'm in charge of my dreams, I can dream myself someplace better. The comic book store, my favorite pizza place, anywhere else but here!" He started breathing heavy as the sound of a chandelier swinging in the wind came from the dining room; the sounds of thunder and lightning were heard from outside; and the faint sounds of a baby crying were heard from all around, followed by the sounds of dozens of children in unintelligible whispers. "Mom, please, help me," Jacob pleaded as he tried to stay strong. The dinging on a bike bell could be heard as a tricycle wheeled itself in from the next room. "I just want to go home." As Jacob tried to pull the door open, a bladed finger tapped him on the shoulder. The boy quickly jumped around to find no one else was in the room with him. Not being able to open the door, Jacob slowly backed away before seeing the basement door entrance. "I can get out through the cellar," Jacob told himself as he headed downstairs. "I'll get myself out of this place." Slowly making his way downstairs, Jacob found the boiler room with dozens of hanging chains reaching down from the ceiling. He could feel the heat from the furnace as he tried to make his way to the cellar door. The sound of children giggling was heard as he saw two boys younger than him, dressed in white as they tossed a rubber ball to each other, although he couldn't see their faces. One had dark hair and the other dark blonde hair. "Which way is the way out?" Jacob asked as he slowly approached. "I don't know," the first boy said. "Rick, do you know the way out?" "I don't know, Dan, do you know the way out?" "Wait, I know," Dan said as both boys faced Jacob, revealing charred skeleton faces. "There is no way out!" Jacob screamed as he turned, running right into Freddy Krueger, who lifted Jacob up by his shirt and slammed him against the wall. "School's back in session, Jacob!" Freddy said as he raised his hand with a clawed glove, ripping Jacob's shirt down the front before tearing it open. "Time to learn a lesson from Professor Freddy!" "MOMMY!" Jacob screamed in pure fear. "Krueger!" A voice shouted as Freddy turned his head to see Alice standing at the end of the room, having been pulled into the dream by her son as soon he cried out for her. Her outfit was the exact same one she'd put Freddy down in after their first confrontation. "Put him down!" "Actually, I think I'll just gut him in front of you," Freddy said. He put a blade against Jacob's chest, drawing a drop of blood as he got ready to slice him open. Jacob started breathing heavily, trying his hardest to wake up. "I've been looking forward to this for a long time. I'll kill you, then the bitch." "NOOOO!" Jacob shouted as a sonic scream echoed through the basement, causing Freddy to drop him while his mother covered her ears. By the time Freddy recovered, Alice was already in front of him, kicking and punching him before a roundhouse kick sent him flying back against the wall. Jacob rushed to get behind her as Freddy stood back up and started laughing. "You're getting weaker," Freddy told her. "All these years of keeping me trapped in this house has been making you slower and more tired. Soon, I'll be strong enough to kill you and your brat." "You'll never get the chance again." Alice told him as fog started to surround Freddy as he started to disappear into the smoke. "See you real soon, Jacob," Freddy said as he vanished. "I'll see you REAL soon." * "I taught you to control your dreams, but I never taught you to do that," Alice said as she brought Jacob a cup of coffee to help him stay awake as he sat on the couch. His hands were visibly shaking as she handed it to him. "Where did you learn that scream?" "Sometimes when I dream, I get these weird powers," Jacob told her. "Sometimes I have superstrength, sometimes I can jump off of walls and have these really fancy moves. My favorite dreams are when I know how to do karate, though, like Uncle Rick." "You have their dream powers," Alice realized. "You must have gotten them from me when you were born, that's why I was never able to really use them again." "Freddy knew me," Jacob told her. "How? Why don't I remember him except for the few times I see him in the distance while I dream?" "Because I thought you'd be safer if you didn't remember him, so I used my dream powers to erase Freddy from your mind everytime he'd show up. He's been trying to get you for 12 years, but I've always been there to stop him," Alice said. "I've been there to stop him from taking any new victims, I even managed to trap him in his own house and seal it off from potential victims. But he was right. After all this time, I am getting weaker. If he lured you into his house... that means he is getting stronger. It's only a matter of time before he gets out to get new victims." "I can fight him," Jacob told her. "I can use my powers to fight him, I know I can kick his ass." "No, you can't," Alice said. "You can't use traditional powers to fight Freddy. Your Uncle Rick, my friend Kirsten, my other friend Mark... they threw everything they had at Freddy and it just bounced off of him like it was nothing. And everytime we think Freddy's dead... he just comes right back. The only way to keep him in check was to stay in Springwood and keep him at bay, but it looks like that might not work too much longer." "Can't anyone help us?" Jacob asked as a knock came at the door. "I doubt it," Alice said as she went to answer. "Who can that be at this hour?" Alice opened the door to find Tommy standing there. * "His name is Jason Voorhees," Tommy said as he threw pictures down onto a table. "He terrorized Camp Crystal Lake for years after his mother was murdered, until he was killed by me. But he... found a way back I'm embarrassed to say," Tommy said as he stared at the ground, ashamed that he was the one who had given Jason a new lease on life. "It's only a matter of time before he claws his way back and starts killing again. But he's not the only one." Tommy threw more pictures onto the table. "There's this Freddy Krueger character; a demon named Pinhead that's into S&M torture; A serial killer in Haddonfield that strikes on Halloween; A chainsaw wielding psycho in Texas; rumors of killer puppets at the Bodega Bay Inn in California; and those are just the beginning. There are a lot more monsters out there murdering innocent people. But there are also survivors, and I'm looking to get them together to fight back." "What, like a super team?" Alice asked with a laugh. "You're looking for strength in numbers. Most of these survivors are just lucky, they have no idea how to fight back against these things. I was barely able to take on Freddy when I first met him. Then he came back when I got pregnant and I was even more helpless since I had a living soul to worry about." "I want to be a super-hero," Jacob told him. "Can I be a part of your team?" "Definitely not," Alice told him. "Look, Mr. Jarvis--" "You can call me Tommy." "Tommy, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but it just seems like you're leading lambs to the slaughter," Alice told him. "I'd be of no use against an undead hockey masked killer, and I'm certainly not sending my 12-year-old son into that kind of situation. Besides, we're still dealing with our Freddy problem." "We won't be defenseless, we'd train and have plans," Tommy told her. "We wouldn't be going in blind. Every survivor contributes what they know, we do the research then we go in and kill these bastards with everything we have." "Goodnight, Mr. Jarvis." Alice said as opened the door. Tommy gathered up the pictures and stood up. "I can help you fight Freddy, maybe even kill him." "Stronger willed people than you have tried and failed," Alice told him. "Nancy Thompson was the strongest of us and even she couldn't keep Freddy in his grave. Even his own mother couldn't keep him down." "Please, just give me a chance," Tommy said as he was ushered out of the door. "Give me a little time and I'll find--" SLAM! Alice turned to see Jacob just staring at her. "What if he could help us kill Freddy?" Jacob asked. "He's been doing this since he was my age." "How do you know?" Alice asked. "I-- I saw it in his head," Jacob told her. "There were these flashes when he was talking, I could see him killing Jason as a little boy. He was scared and broken, but he did it." "How is this possible? You weren't asleep while he was here," Alice told him. "Do you-- do you have powers outside of dreams?" "Sometimes I can see you thinking about Dad and Uncle Rick," Jacob told her. "I can see what you were like when you were kids, especially when you're daydreaming. I was just too scared to tell you about it. I can feel how scared you were to be alone before I came along." "Go to bed, we'll talk more about this in the morning. And stay away from that house, no matter what it takes," Alice said, now visibly shaking at the thought of what Freddy could do if he got ahold of Jacob. As soon as Jacob headed upstairs, Alice saw a folder Tommy had dropped on his way out. She picked it up and saw what Tommy had pieced together about Freddy. "Oh my God." * "Okay, Alice was a dead end, but I think the kid might have something," Tommy told himself as he returned to his motel room. "I just need to get him alone so I can talk to him, maybe he can convince his mom to join this fight." After stripping down to his boxers, Tommy got into his bed and stared at the ceiling for an hour before finally falling asleep. * The sound of children laughing woke Tommy up as he sat up in a strange bed. He looked around, realizing he had awakened inside of a cabin. "What the hell?" Tommy asked as he rushed to the window, seeing that he was at Camp Crystal Lake. "No, not here." Rushing outside, Tommy looked up at the darkened sky, knowing Jason wasn't too far away. "Come on, Tommy, wake up," Tommy said as he slapped himself. "WAKE UP!" A sinister laughter that he'd never heard before echoed around him before seeing the trio of girls in white dresses playing jump rope outside of the happen. "One, two, Jason's coming for you..." "Why can't I wake up?" Tommy asked as he saw a group of camp counselors on the pier, all of them wearing green and red sweaters. All of them were watching a boy drowning in the lake while pointing and laughing. When Tommy noticed the deformed boy, he realized who it was. "Jason?" "I guess shit can't float!" one of the counselors said in Freddy's voice while laughing. "You think you can save anyone? WRONG!" "What the hell are you?" Tommy asked as he tried to back up. "It's Freddy," Jacob said as he stood at the end of the pier. "He's gaining power somehow. I felt him coming for you so I came to try to help, but I don't think he can touch us. I think he's still trapped in his house." "Not for too much longer," Freddy told him. "Thanks to you two." "What's he talking about?" Tommy asked as he turned around and found Alice standing right in front of him. "Get back to my house and wake Jacob up," Alice told him. "And get him as far away from Springwood as you can." "What?" Jacob asked. "Mom, what's--" "He's been killing unborn children in their REM sleep," Alice told them. "Making them look like miscarriages. That's how he's been staying off of my radar while he gains power. He's been stealing their souls to make himself stronger." "I've been biding my time for twelve years, toying with you the whole time," Freddy said through the counselor. "Making you think you were winning when all you've been doing is wearing yourself out. I just needed enough power to get Jacob to start fearing me, and fear me he does. He can see my power everytime you think about Kristen, and Rick and Danny boy and how they died. You've been feeding him fear for me, Alice. And little Tommy here's put me over the top with how much he's scared of his old friend Jason. In a few minutes, I'll be able to start making Springwood my playground again." Alice looked at Tommy. "I have to keep him distracted. Get Jacob out of town, Tommy. Please. Teach him to use his powers so he can come back and finish this when he's grown up." Alice leaned in and whispered a message into Tommy's ear before she put two fingers on his forehead and woke him up in his motel room. After a few seconds he realized what she'd said to him before he woke up. "Shit!" Tommy shouted as he grabbed his pants and raced for the door. "MOM!" Jacob shouted. "Let me help!" "No," Alice said as she hugged him. "You need to run now. Go with Tommy when he shows up. You're the only one who can defeat him, but you need to train. I trust you to do this, Jacob, you've got all the powers to do this, I know it now. Kristen and Nancy, Rick, Debbie, Mark, Kincaid, Joey... you have all that power and more. Now you're the Dream Master." Alice kissed his forehead, transferring all of her powers to him as he disappeared in a small burst of light that floated away into the sky, just as Freddy started ripping his way out of the counselor's body, sending blood and chunks of organs flying out. Alice stood up and turned around just as Freddy finished cutting his way out, dropping the counselor's shredded body to the ground. He reached into the dead counselor's gut and pulled his hat out, shaking off the excess gore as he placed it on top of his head. "This has been a long time coming," Freddy said as he rattled his clawed fingers together. "I can't wait to taste your son's blood. You'll live just long enough to see me cut his intestines out." "You'll never touch him," Alice said as they paced around each other. "If I don't kill you, he will." "He's welcome to try," Freddy laughed as he slashed at Alice, who ducked and punched him in the face. Freddy just smiled at her. "What's the matter? Low on power?" "I have enough left to make sure he's safe," Alice said as she started punching and kicking him at Freddy, knocking him into the water. "Jacob's going to live." The water started boiling as the pier started to shake and fall apart. Alice started running as a demonic looking Freddy floated out of the water, floating over the water toward her. "He's going to die the most horrible death I've ever doled out," Freddy laughed as Alice started to run, but tripped on a root Freddy created out of the ground. "And just because you've been such a pain in my ass, I'm going to draw it out and have fun with him. His suffering is going to last as long as I can make it, and it's all thanks to you!" "Leave him alone!" Alice shouted as she tossed a machete at him. The machete impaled itself in his chest as Freddy just smirked. "Sorry, machetes aren't my style," Freddy told her as he pointed a bladed finger past her. "They're his." Alice turned around to see Jason Voorhees standing behind her with a machete in hand. "This is a new friend of mine. He's taking a little nap himself. But once I get more power, I'll wake him up, too!" The two monsters closed in on Alice as she closed her eyes. "I love you, Jacob," Alice whispered. "Be strong for me." * Tommy arrived at Alice's house and broke through the door before racing upstairs to find Jacob trying to render himself unconscious by ramming his head against the wall. "Jacob, stop!" Tommy shouted as he grabbed Jacob to pull him back. "That isn't going to help her!" "She passed all of her powers onto me!" Jacob shouted back with tears rolling down his eyes. "He's going to kill her!" "No, he's not," Tommy said. "You have to trust her, Jacob. She's going to be okay, but we have to get out of here before it's too late. She can only keep him distracted for so long, but we have to get you of town before Freddy comes for you." "What about my Mom?" "We have to trust that she knows what she's doing," Tommy said as he faced Jacob. "Just like I need you to trust me right now. We need to go." "We'll take my Mom with us, if she escapes, she'll wake up, right?" Jacob asked as he ran to her bedroom. "Mom?" There was no one there except a note for Jacob sitting on the bed. Jacob, I know this is hard, but I have to leave you now. Freddy's become too powerful to face on my own and this isn't your time. Find Tommy and have him take you out of town. You need to become the next Dream Master by mastering your dream powers. It's the only way to stop him for good. Don't worry about me, I have a plan to get away, but I need you to be safe and right now Tommy Jarvis is my only option. Freddy's loose, but he's bound to Springwood so he can't hurt you if you're far away. Please don't try to find me, if I survive, I'll find you someday. But right now we have to go down separate roads so we can reunite in the future. I love you, and I'm so very proud of you - Your mother Jacob started to break down as Tommy helped him downstairs before going to pack some clothes for Jacob. As he was preparing to leave the room, Jacob stood at the doorway before he grabbed his Uncle Rick's bandana off of his bed post. "I can't leave without this." Jacob whispered as held the bandana tightly in his hand. Minutes later, Tommy's truck was headed out of town as Jacob looked back at his house, trying to be strong. "We'll be back someday, I swear," Tommy said as he focused on the road. "And we'll bring help when we do." "What kind of help?" Jacob asked as Tommy just smirked at him. "The kind that'll curbstomp that dream stalking motherfucker into dream paste." * Westin Hills Asylum "She just showed up on our doorstep, looking like she'd been beaten and stabbed," the doctor said as they wheeled the patient in. "She was mumbling about bad dreams so we put gave her some Hypnocil to calm her until we can talk to her clearly. She was talking all kinds of insanity." "Then we'll keep her here for observation," Dr. Neil Gordon told her. "Put her in with our other star patient." As Alice was wheeled down the hall, she clutched a picture of Jacob tightly in her hand as Dr. Gordon whispered to her. "Don't worry, you'll be safe from Freddy here." * In the dream world, Freddy quietly laughed to himself as he watched Tommy's truck leave Springwood on a broken t.v. "Don't worry, Jacob, when you come back I'll have a huge welcome home party planned. But for now, I have all of my other children to tend to," Freddy said as he turned his attention toward a chained up soul sitting next to him, covered from head to toe in blood. "Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you. Alice and Jacob may have gotten away, but I still have you to keep me company, and until little Jacob comes home, we'll have plenty of time to play." To Be Continued... |
Ed's Note - Be sure to read Mighty Max before you carve into The Gathering!
A Special Seriesfrom the mind of Tobias Christopher! Archives
October 2019
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