A sequel to the Robert Englund version, which they should really, really, really do!
Set in present day New York, Christine dies of breast cancer, ironically just several months and on the same day that she "supposedly" killed Erik Destler. The female character is named Celeste, who is a poor slum girl trying to snake her way through life, but just really wants to follow her dream as a performer. When she sneaks into a theater and caught up by a sudden urge she starts to sing. A voice, seeming to come from nowhere, tells her how great her voice is, but how much it could improve. She takes up the offer of him becoming her voice teacher and everything unravels from there...
Heaven's Light
I walked down the sidewalk with the most grudging, sour face you could imagine. I glared at anyone who gave me a dirty look, which was almost everyone. I didn't get how people were threatened by anyone different. And I was very different with my shoulder length straw-blond hair in mini-braids, my battered jeans and denim jacket which had a noticeable switch blade sticking out of my pocket. There was this one guy who gave me this really dirty look and I just had to flash the switch at him and he hurried along like a scared little boy.
I had to laugh, men thought they were never scared. It was the job of girls like me to pound that out of men and show them what they really should be afraid of. So you might be asking yourself, why is a young, seemingly threatening, & battered girl wandering the streets of New York City? Well, I was bored, no other explanation besides that. Besides, it was fun freaking the tourists out of there minds, by showing them the dark side of the NYC. I was just strolling down an alley through Broadway when I saw these drunkards in my way. I squared my shoulders and raised my head boldly and kept on walking. One of the guys noticed me after a few long strides. He poked one his friends and he looked up. Soon they all had seen me approaching and started to chuckle menacingly.
I shook my head, these kids were like my age for-crying-out-loud! Under-age drinking, smoking, and drugs what a beautiful world this is. And did anyone ever give a shit about it? Hell no! Let the kids kill themselves for all we care. "Hey, whaz happenin', suga?" one of the boys drawled.
"Walking," I said and pushed him aside.
The guys started to laugh. "A sweet lookin' thing like you shun' be wallkin' aroun' alone," the guy said grabbing me around the upper arm.
I glared at him as his friends started to approach me. "I just want to pass by unharmed," I growled.
He pulled me to him and I tugged gently to keep him away. "But we were just having a party an' we don 'ave a guest," he said and tugged me harder.
"Don't," I warned.
The guys chuckled and moved in. The guy gripping me decided to give up tugging and walked right up to my face. I glared fiercely and pulled out my switch and expertly sliced his arm. He yelped and jumped away from me. "I ask again let me pass and no one gets hurt," I growled turning slowly to each one of them. Their faces turned from amused to enraged. "Ya think you're gonna hurt us bitch?!" another guy snarled.
If there's one thing I've learned out of my 16 years of life in the west side it's this, drunks that are also high are stupid and dangerous. I held my switch like it was born in my hand. The boys broke their beer bottles and approached with malicious faces. One of them leaped forward and swung his bottle at my head. I easily dodged and my switch sliced his back. Another one leaped at me and I stabbed his arm held him there then sent him tumbling to his friend.
I smirked and dodged another blow to my head. I grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. "Hey idiot, I can hear you!" I yelled in his ear and sent him to join his friends who were awkwardly trying to get to their feet.
My smirk grew into a contemptuous smile. The last one looked at me as if I was something from another planet. I waggled my eyebrows at him. "Boo!"
He ran like a scared little boy, which basically was what he was. I turned to the others, the one who grabbed me looked up from below his other friends and glared menacingly. Then I raised my still blood-stained switch to my mouth and slowly licked the blade. "You're a thing from Hell!" he growled.
"And you, my friend, are Hell bound," I said.
Wow, that sounded familiar,I thought. I blinked a few times before returning my attention to the boys. I kneeled in front of them, making sure the grabber's eyes were level with mine. "Now when I pass through here again I'm sure that no one will get hurt, because I don't want to see your drunk & high butts around here again," I snarled.
They all gave me fearful looks and started to awkwardly and hurriedly get to their feet. The first two ran, but the grabber glared at me then slowly started to trot away. "Bitch!" he yelled over his shoulder as he picked up into a run.
I smirked and walked up the alley. Suddenly I felt something behind me. I stopped to listen for footsteps, a breath, anything. I furrowed my brow when I heard nothing. I had a trick I used on stalkers, I acted as if I was going to start walking again then at the last second stop and I'd hear a footstep behind me. I raised my foot as if taking a step then stopped. I heard it, it was almost like a small box being set down, but it was enough.
I took off at an amazing speed. I had joined Track once, probably out of survival necessity, but it still helped. I ran faster and longer than any guy who challenged me to a race and running away from the occasional stalker. Now you're probably wondering, why would a girl who just took out four guys be running from one? Well, you see, I could handle guys in my age limit, but I couldn't handle men, they were too strong and too dangerous when they were drunk, high, or both.
Soon I became tired and could still tell that the guy was still chasing me, but falling behind. I passed door after door, until I came to one that looked promising. I yanked it open and slammed it shut before putting a pole through the handlebar and jamming it in the door opening. I was breathing heavily and I was shaking from head to toe, but the door didn't show signs of struggle. No rattling, no jerking, nothing. I gave a sigh of relief.
Not wanting to go out in case he was just waiting for me to come out I decided to explore. I walked out into a narrow hallway and saw a few doors as I walked. Soon enough I came to a huge stage and my eyes widened as realized where I was. I had stumbled into the Manhattan Center. I swallowed hard, if anyone found I was here I was as good as dead. But no one was here, some idiot left the back door open, so I just walked out to the middle and looked at the many seats. I gulped.
I had a secret, I wanted to be a performer, I wanted to sing, to dance, to act like someone else so I wouldn't really be judged on who I was, but how well I played the character or how powerful my voice was. I sighed and closed my eyes. I could see it, thousands of people filling the seats, cheering, applauding, whistling, yelling "An cor!" "An cor!" I smiled and laughed. The people that had shunned me were praising me.
I opened my eyes slowly and looked up at the now dim spotlights. I imagined they were alight and their glaring light washed over me almost making me sweat. I opened my mouth and music poured out like a waterfall. "I don't know if you can hear me or if you're even there. I don't know if you would listen to a street girl's prayer. Yes I know I'm just an outcast, I shouldn't speak to you. Still I see your face and wonder, 'weren't you once an outcast too?'"
I sang like I was really performing in front of thousands of people. I sang as if I truly believed what I sung. "God help the outcasts, hungry from birth. Show them the mercy they don't find on earth. God help my people, we look to you still. God help the outcasts or nobody will." Suddenly I heard clapping. It was an odd thing, but it felt and heard like it was all around me, I couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from. "Brava, brava, bravisima!" a voice said from out of nowhere.
I furiously jerked my head from side to side, searching for the source. "Who are you, where are you?!" I called. "Show yourself coward!"
I pulled out my switchblade. The voice just laughed and a cold blast of air swirled around me, making me dropping the blade and wrapping my arms around me. "What are you?" I asked in awe.
There was a deafening silence. "I am everything and nothing. I am neither spirit, nor am I flesh," the voice said.
I couldn't tell a lot from the voice, but I could tell it was definitely male. "I am the sound in your song, I am sorrow, desire and longing. I am your voice... and you are my voice," he said.
"What is your name?" I asked.
"It's been so long since I went by any name," the voice said then silence.
I waited before asking my next question. "What do you want?"
"To teach you the art of music," he said. "Your voice is beautiful, but it could use improvement, let me teach you and your voice will soar to the heavens!"
I bit my lip and thought it over. "And if I chose not to let you teach me, what then?" I asked.
The voice was silent for a while. "Then you will be as you are now, a lowly street girl, trying to swipe and sneak her way through life," the voice said.
I bit my lip harder to keep myself from blurting out petty protests. "But let me teach you and you will be the envy of Broadway and you... we will make music that the world will love forever."
I bit my lip harder than I ever bit it. His offer was tempting, so very tempting. I felt this odd presence around me... no not odd, soothing, caressing, and at the same time frightening and overwhelming. I stopped biting my lip and tasted my own blood. "I'll do it, you teach me and what's in it for you?" I asked.
"Nothing you can't give to me later," the voice answered.
I sighed. "Alright," I said and started to walk back to the door.
"Meet me, in the abondened theater a few blocks off, I'll be waiting, you may come at what ever time you choose I shall be there," he said.
I gulped and finally exited the building, feeling like I just sold my soul to a psycho.\
A shadow in the rafters looked down at the girl leaving the Center. "We shall make music the world will love forever and this time I will not lose you."
Oooo, creepy. Well if you want to find out what happens next, comment fast and furiously. ^-^
