The Dollhouse

Andy and Ash walked into the bunker, noting that everyone else was already there.

"So, let me get this straight-" Tommy spoke up. "The thing we're looking for is called the Tablet of Ephialtes, it has to power to grant multi-dimensional travel, and can transport people and objects across different dimensions?"

"Exactly." Fury confirmed.

"And it's found in Kandahar?" Laurie added.

"Sounds about right." Ash said, opening another beer.

"What are we waiting for then?" Frank asked, getting up. "Let's go."

"Not yet." Fury stopped Castle. "We need to figure out a plan for this."

"Not really." Andy piped up. "Frank and I have been to Kandahar before. Send us."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Nick asked.

"No, but Frank and I know that place better than anyone else." Andy reasoned.

"I'm going with you." Ash interrupted. "I've had a history of treasure hunting."

"And going back in time." Andy muttered, but begrudgingly accepted the older man's help.

"What are the rest of us going to do?" Laurie asked, curious.

"Strode, you and Jarvis are with me." Fury informed. "We're going to get some answers from some old 'friends'." Andy smirked, gathered Frank and Ash, and the three headed towards a quinjet, while Fury, Tommy, and Laurie entered one of SHIELD's modified vans.


Oak Grove, Minnesota

Nica and Alice approached the suburban home home in Oak Grove, where they were welcomed by Golan and Dylan Beekler.

"Greetings, new acolytes!" Dylan shouted. "You are now slaves to the god-lord Golan!" Before Nica or Alice could say anything, Carole stepped outside.

"Oh Dylan, that's no way to talk to our guests." Carole said happily. "Come in! Ash mentioned you two!" Nica and Alice followed the three inside, and were met by what appeared to be man-eating stuffed animals, with razor sharp teeth.

"What the fuck?" Alice asked, alarmed.

"What are those things?" Nica asked, horrified.

"They're our pets!" Golan grinned, as he and Dylan started to pet the mutated animals. "Don't worry, they only nibble!"

"Hey Alice, you wanna see my rat parts collection?" Dylan asked eagerly. "I was able to get enough to make a necklace!"

"Uh… sure!" Alice feigned enthusiasm, while giving her aunt a confused look. Alice then snapped her head back towards Dylan, and began following her up stairs. "So, who's Golan?"

"He's the god lord of Gkruool!" Dylan said excitedly. "I found an ancient book from where Carole works, and used it to summon him here years ago!"

"And he's not going to kill us?" Alice asked, surprised.

"Of course not, we're letting you become an acolyte!" Dylan smiled. "Soon, we will help Golan reclaim his throne in Gkruool!"

"You don't really believe all that, do you?" Alice asked. "You're the same age as me, if not a couple years older." Immediately, Dylan dropped the act.

"Yeah, I know. Sometimes, it's good to keep up appearances." Dylan admitted. "Golan's a great guy though. Even when I wanted to murder everyone when I was a kid, we were pretty harmless."

"Thank God." Alice exhaled, but upon seeing Beekler's puzzled expression, she continued. "Sorry. I just have a bad experience with demons or other supernatural beings. No offense to Golan."

"I'm sure he won't care." Dylan waved the comment away. "But what did you mean by that?" Alice sighed, looking out the window, before she decided to speak.

"Two years ago, I wanted to rescue my aunt Nica from a killer doll named Chucky." Alice began. "You might've heard about the doll on the news before, but he's real. Anyway, both of them were in a mental asylum, and my uncle Andy didn't want me to go. So… I improvised."

"What did you do? Dylan asked, curious.

"I transferred my soul into a doll, the same way Chucky did." Alice revealed. "I never counted on the fact that being in the doll would unlock my darkest emotions, and I used those to murder someone in cold blood." Alice closed her eyes. Even now, she could still hear Doctor Foley's painful screams as the flames licked his body, while her own maniacal laughter echoed in her mind. "I wanted to save my aunt, but in doing so, I became the very monster I wanted to stop."

"But you're clearly human again." Dylan pointed out. "That has to count for something."

"I don't know." Alice said solemnly, looking at the floor. "I know my uncle Andy had something similar happen to him, but it nearly tore him apart from the inside out."

"Maybe we pull it out of you first." Dylan suggested, getting an idea.

"What do you mean?" Alice asked, confused.

"There's probably a spell in there that can expel your inner demon." Dylan said excitedly, grabbing the tome and flipping through the pages. "Then you can kill it here-"

"NO!" Alice yelled. "What if it escapes and goes on a killing spree?" Dylan looked at Alice for a moment, before the gleeful look in her eyes vanished.

"You're right." Dylan realized, slumping her shoulders. "But sooner or later, you'll have to face your darkness."

"I know." Alice murmured, and looked blankly out the window.


The Fridge

Fury, Tommy, and Laurie entered the Fridge through the roof, and descended in one of the many elevators.

"Who are we speaking with?" Laurie asked.

"Elliott Spencer." Fury answered. "I think he can shed light on all this." The group continued walking through the maximum security prison, eventually stopping at a cell that housed the former Hell priest.

"What can you expect to get out of him?" Tommy asked, bewildered at the reason they were at the prison.

"Hopefully, we can learn of the nature of the Tablet." Fury reasoned. "And possibly an answer to these more ancient monsters roaming around." With that, Nick entered Spencer's cell by himself, and greeted the former cenobite.

"How's the cell?" Fury asked gruffly. "Comfortable?"

"No, but I can manage." Elliott replied. "I have spent over a hundred years learning the many ways of torture and pain. This is nothing."

"I'd like to know why all these monsters from hundreds of years ago are suddenly popping up now." Fury announced folding his arms. "The Wolfman. Frankenstein's monster. Barclay told me he fought that creature from the Black Lagoon earlier. How are they all connected?" Upon hearing all those monsters listed off, Elliott chuckled.

"Those were the more ancient horrors. Ones that you have forgotten." Elliott explained. "In the new era, you've all forgotten what true horror is. And those weren't the last ancient evils."

"You referring to the king of vampires?" Nick asked. Spencer nodded.

"The Impaler, Dracula, is coming, as well as Imhotep." Elliott declared. "They have been recruited by Krueger, as they have a strange connection."

"What kind of connection?" Fury inquired.

"Dracula was the first one to have ever escaped my cenobites." Spencer revealed. "After he was killed in battle, blood was spilled over his place of death in another war. Vlad Dracula quickly fed off of other mortals. But unlike all the others who escaped Hell, he wanted more than just becoming whole again. After years of practicing black magic, Dracula discovered immortality through feeding, as well as other powers, but at the cost of certain weaknesses."

"Standard vampire weaknesses." Fury realized. "And what about the Mummy, Imhotep?"

"Imhotep was the very first Deadite." Elliott explained. "He willingly summoned the Kandarian Demon to possess him and give him immense power, causing him to conquer Egypt, before the Knights Templar seemingly defeated him with magic and the Egyptians mummified him alive." Fury began to feel nervous, and decided to change the subject.

"If you have been around for over a hundred years like you said, have you ever heard of the Tablet of Ephialtes?" Fury asked, and he noticed Spencer stiffen. "I see. What exactly is it?"

"The Tablet was created by none other than the Devil himself." Elliott revealed. "He had wanted to use it to bring Hell to Earth, but he required a soul from here to build it. Unfortunately for him, during the fifth crusade, some Knights found the Tablet and stopped the Devil and his disciple from completing their goal. The Tablet was locked away, where no man can find it."

"Must not be that hidden, because I know where it is." Fury said smugly. "I've already sent a few people to get it."

"You can't!" Elliott warned, his eyes growing wide. "If you use that power-"

"Relax, we're just capturing it so that Krueger won't get his bladed mitts on it." Fury quickly interrupted. "Thank you, Elliott Spencer, for the information. You have my gratitude." Fury got up and exited the cell, where he was met by Tommy and Laurie looking at him funny.

"What is it?" Nick asked.

"Maybe we shouldn't go after the Tablet." Tommy suggested.

"Not an option." Fury shot back. "If what Spencer said in there is true, that's all the more reason to get to it before Krueger does." Fury, Tommy, and Laurie walked back to the elevator, and the conversation on the way up was rather silent, except for Fury's talk with Jekyll.

"Henry, hurry up with that vampire poison, and throw in all the other standard weaknesses for good measure." Fury requested. "A reliable source confirmed that Dracula is coming for us."


Kandahar

"We're approaching Kandahar now." Andy announced, as he began to land the quinjet just outside the city. "Fuck, this place brings back bad memories."

"So why the Hell did you volunteer to come?" Ash drunkenly asked.

"Because we're the only ones who know this place better than anyone else, asshole." Frank glared at the man twenty years his senior. Ash simply shrugged, and continued to drink his twelfth beer. Seconds later, the quinjet landed, and the trio quickly got out of the bird.

"Alright, Fury, where is the Tablet?" Andy asked in his comms.

"It's in underground, under the old Taliban fort you and Castle raided years ago." Fury informed him. "Your demon friend, Golan, was able to pinpoint the location with his magic." Andy shuddered, knowing full well about the fort.

"Shit." Frank muttered. "That place better be abandoned." Castle, Andy, and Ash walked through the town, thankful that they could use the darkness as cover.

Ten minutes later, the trio arrived at the fort, and upon entering, Andy and Frank led the way.

"Was there ever a lower level here?" Andy said aloud, lighting a flashlight, while Frank pulled out a pump action shotgun.

"Maybe." Frank mused. "We weren't really into exploring the last time." Andy, Frank, and Ash crept around corners, eventually finding the door leading to what looked like a cellar.

"Wait!" Ash shouted, causing the two younger men to turn back towards him. "The last time I entered a creepy cellar, all my friends died."

"Well, this time, we know what we're after." Barclay replied, kicking the cellar door open, and he descended into the basement area first. Once Ash and Frank followed, Andy shone his light across the room, revealing that the cellar was more like a tomb, with bodies everywhere. And in the middle of it was a large obsidian obelisk, with blood red writing on one side.

"The Tablet." Andy gasped, as Frank pulled out a large knife to chisel the stone out. "We found it."

"Good." The three turned around, seeing a grotesque corpse, wearing layers upon layers of gauze and bandages. "Give it to me."

"Imhotep?" Ash asked.

"You know me?" the Mummy asked.

"Of course, you're the very first Deadite!" Williams proclaimed. "You used the Necronomicon to gain your own power!"

"And now, you will die!" Imhotep declared, and he raised his hands towards the heavens. The ground began to shake, and a swarm of locusts flew down into the tomb, flying all around the trio.

"Jesus, fuck!" Andy shouted, batting the insects away from his face, while Frank and Ash did the same. Barclay began to run towards Imhotep, but the undead mummy backhanded him with supernatural strength, sending him crashing into one of the stone tombs. Ash tried to attack as well, but fared no better, even with his artificial hand.

"Got anything that'll harm this prick?" Frank asked, shooting at the mummy, but it apparently did no damage.

"What about this?" Ash replied, pulling out a unique looking dagger from his pants. Andy looked closer, noticing that the hilt was fashioned with a bone, and the end was shaped like a skull. "I'm surprised they found it, after having to kill that big ass demon last year."

"Where the Hell did you get that?" Andy asked.

"Fury gave it to me after we escaped Voorhees." Williams explained. "And I got a crazy, half-baked plan!" Ash started sprinting towards the mummy, while Frank and Andy caught on, realizing what he was planning. Imhotep telekinetically threw Andy in the air, causing him to crash into Frank, while Williams dove to the side. Once Ash regained his footing, he stabbed the Kandarian dagger into Imhotep's side, and without hesitation, brought the blade up and slashed the mummy's throat.

"You lose, asshole." Ash grinned, and the undead Egyptian dissolved into ancient dust, scattering across the winds.

"Well, that was some Indiana Jones bullshit." Frank muttered. "Back to work, right?" Andy nodded, and he, Ash, and Frank continued chiselling the tablet of the stone, eventually getting the written part out of the obelisk.

"Nice." Andy complimented, sticking the tablet in a bag for the time being. "Let's head back." Frank and Ash nodded, and together, the three of them left the fort and back to the quinjet, thankfully without getting into any trouble.

"We ready to go?" Andy asked, activating the quinjet. Upon hearing the other men's confirmations, Andy started the engine on the bird, and seconds later, they left the ground. Andy quickly steered in the direction back towards the United States, and as the quinjet began to fly, he set it on autopilot. The US was hours away, and he needed some type of rest…