Every soul is afraid of death. It's an unavoidable fate…
The atmosphere is a noisy blur. Partiers dance to obnoxiously loud beats. Frank feels the music rhythm underneath his feet as he navigates swaying crowds. Alcohol, perfume, and body odor remain, sticky and repulsive. Even here he's unable to relax.
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Too much. Suffocating. He needs fresh air. A hand grabs his shoulder and Frank hears a friend. "You okay?" Concern hums in Joey's deep voice.
A single glare reveals all.
"That Julie girl bothering you again?"
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He gifts Frank a brilliant smile. "Susie and I can distract her for a bit."
Frank swaps hand-shakes. "I owe you guys."
"You'd do the same for me and Susie. Don't worry about it, man."
Frank slips outdoors. Julie is too much. Fake, aggressive, manipulative. Disgusted, he avoids her at all costs. 'I hate leeches.'
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People don't act real. Sure, everybody has insecurities. What's a dagger without its sheathe? Yet Frank's tired of being lost. He has Joey and Susie. But there's still a cold depthless pit, a barren basin right under where his heart beats.
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The world looms over him ominously. A prediction of a bland future. It scares Frank. He stops strolling to admire the vast forest beyond. Drawn to its beauty he takes a step. Then another. Soon he's running.
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Sprinting, lungs a tornado of fire, breath ragged, he stumbles. Knees strike earth. Coughing and sputtering, he gazes at the horizon. Tears burn and fall. Not from the run. It had cleared his mind until he eventually collapsed.
Memories surge in faster than a train.
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Frank's life had been unsteady until he had met him.
Sure, the Legion had mended a lot of heartache. Without Joey and Susie he's certain he'd be wayward like a ship lacking a sail. But Frank's time with Quentin was special and euphoric.
Their meeting was mundane and ordinary. Nothing whimsical from an outsider's perspective. Quentin and Frank's personalities shouldn't mix but there's a mutual bond. Being outsiders. They're the school freaks.
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One day Frank got detention. Normal routine. He had to clean the entire gym. Instead, Frank sat on the bleachers besides the other guy. His whole body is wrought with distress, but what's really captivating are his eyes.
A clear blue. Sleepy, but alight with lively pleasantness submerged in the depths.
Frank's heard the rumors.
That Quentin is delusional, muttering of a creepy burned man haunting others' dreams. Like some old ghost story told at campfires to scare friends. But hey, how can Frank judge? Everybody has a fatal flaw.
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Kicking a vending machine he obtains two sodas and offers one to Smith.
"Thanks." Cracking the lid open he dunks it in one shot.
A smile chips Frank's everyday frown. "Not a sleeper?"
"No. You?"
"I wish."
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Turning to Smith he asks, "How'd you get here?"
"Jake and Laurie ditched me." Quentin's face ignited a scorching blush. "F-For some uh, you know…" he laughed. "And apparently I look suspicious on my own so."
Frank sneered. "Assholes."
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He leaned in with a mischievous grin. "Wanna guess how I got here then?"
"Oh uh," shocked, Quentin's eyes grew wide. "Did you punch somebody?" He flinched, awaiting a snappy reply.
Frank laughed. Tossing an empty can he hit a fist into the palm of his hand. "I broke the guy's nose! You should've seen everybody's faces! That smug bustard was pissing me off."
"For real?" Smith chuckled, recalling seeing the injury while walking to class. "Yeah, that coach is a jerk."
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"So…we aren't cleaning the gym are we?"
"Hell no. We're gonna find something fun to do. C'mon," Frank tugged Quentin along only to retract his hand. Cool guys don't hold other guy's hands. Right?
Right.
"It's not like anybody's gonna care about some students bailing for the day."
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The pair wanders in sprawling woodland. It's peaceful. Misty white sunlight spears heavy veils of leaves. "Jake told me these woods have an ancient Entity watching over it. Like at midnight, him and I often see thick fog and hear strange whispers."
"Hmm, sounds better that the other dumb urban legends the other students make up I guess."
"Do you think it's real? Something that powerful to be existing, unnoticed by everybody?"
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"I dunno'. All I know is that when blood is on the ground here that whoever's around gets spirited away."
Quentin chuckled. "Hah, that's scary. It's actually kind of interesting."
"You like the paranormal?"
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Quentin nervously wrinkled his jacket. A melancholy smile bled onto his face. "You can say that. What about you? Wouldn't it be crazy being in another dimension?"
"It's cool and all but honestly, I don't care where I am as long as I'm having fun."
Smith smiled. "Look at that tenacity! Inspiring!"
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Grinning, Frank pushed Quentin. "Shut up, loser!"
Blue eyes glint lightheartedly. Seeing this, Frank crouches into a fighting stance. "Oh? Playing games now, are we?"
Quentin wields lithe strength –unexpected from a scrawny, sleep-deprived, short person like him.
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With a grunt Frank fell. They roll, laughing hysterically. Frank eventually struggles out of Quentin's grasp. He totally isn't distracted by Smith's brilliant blue eyes or soft features. Or his tangled brown locks. No way. Only girls get into mushy love stuff like that…
"Aha!" Frank dodged Quentin. "Winded already?" He pins Smith to the ground.
"How'd you win? It's like you know my every move."
Yeah. Because Frank and his gang mug people often.
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They'd spend hours at that forest. He'd be absent so much that Susie and Joey got worried.
"We haven't been on runs that much, Frank."
"Oooh, do you have a girlfriend?" Susie asked excitedly. "Can they join the Legion?"
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"I don't have a girlfriend."
Joey, reading his best friend perfectly, didn't prod. Instead he set up karaoke. He really wondered what Frank was doing in those moments though. Frank hardly ever hid anything from the Legion.
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Weeks pass. Frank meets Quentin in the usual clearing. He leans in and kisses the shy, blushing Smith. A thumb rubs over a new scar on his chin. "He cut you again?"
"It's not a big deal. I can handle-"
"You constantly put your life in danger and get these horrible injuries, man!"
Quentin flinched. "B-But I have to. I l-lost all my friends in my old town. I need to save everyone from Freddy."
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"I don't give a shit about Kruger or those dumbass classmates of ours. They say you're a freak and you still save them every night."
His brows furrowed. "To be fair, they never remember the nightmares when I save them from Freddy."
"Dreamwalker or not I don't want you to get hurt."
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He tugged Quentin's jacket cuff. "Let me go with you. We can fight Kruger together!"
Dread leaks into Quentin's eyes. He shakes his head. "No. I already lost my friends. I won't-"
Frank's fists bunch up and his jaw sets rigidly. "That bastard! You telling me there's no way to defeat him?! You'll be trapped in this endless cycle forever? Just because you were the last survivor left alive?"
"Yes. It's something I have to do. I've been trying to figure out Kruger's weaknesses but…"
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"There has to be a way. Something he's afraid of."
Yawning, Quentin's head rests on Frank's shoulder. A bandaged hand rustles through curly locks.
"I've been trying to find anything. Old records, studying how he fights, how his illusion powers work. But I get no clues. Kruger's getting harder to fight."
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Smith looks up at Frank, wearing a sleepy smile. "Thanks for, you know. Patching me up. If I kept going to the nurse they'd put me in a padded cell for sure."
"By the time this is all over you'll come back as ribbons."
Quentin chuckled. "Probably."
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Every day Smith shows up with fresh scars. Long hideous ones. Like a demonic cat shredding a person apart.
It pisses Frank off. He won't let this go further. He resolves to defeat that roasted bacon strip one way or another.
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"Here you go Frank! I got these from the library!" Susie dropped a stack of books at the bar at the hideout.
Joey glanced at the titles. "I didn't know you're into understanding dreams and psychology."
Frank ignores his humorous tone and flips through the books. "It's for something important." He simply said.
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Joey and Susie exchange perplexed glances. Frank's never been studious. Crafty, sure. But he left research to his friends.
The pair plays detective nowadays. When Frank was out they'd be collecting clues.
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He's been taking less caffeine pills. Though his restless pacing hasn't changed.
Disorganized notes lay scattered in the ski resort.
When he falls asleep their worried whispers create a hum over the crackling fireplace.
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"Frank?! What're –you scared me!" Quentin clutched his chest in alarm, lighter in hand. "Wait. How'd you get here? No," fear filters onto his expression. "We're in your dreamscape."
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"We'll stop Kruger together. I lured him here by falling asleep."
"Do you know how reckless-"
"It's reckless fighting without backup." Frank twirls a glinting switch blade. "Let's go find him."
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The surreal boiler room unfolds into a rusty red maze. Hot steam slows their pace. "Hey wait, does it look like the pipes are melting?"
"They are! Run!"
Pivoting, Frank and Quentin sprint to evade a surging wave of metal. Drops of it hiss when contacting their shoes. Sinister laughter rebounds off the walls, crisp and snippy.
Unlike in dramatic action thriller movies, this fight ends quickly.
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Freddy frequently torments his victims by illusions. Not this time. He senses this one brawl is vital –too vital to lose.
The traps he set up should be enough.
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Taunting Quentin and Frank of the inevitable, he attacks.
Metal talons clash with a knife blade. The weapons clatter nosily and tremble viciously. "Got a bodyguard this time? Huh. What a bitch." Freddy laughed. His sunken dark eyes gleam as they land on seething brown. A crooked smile curls. "Ah. Seems your boyfriend here has a troubled past. I wondered why he uses a knife so well."
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A cruel smile unfolds on Frank's strong jaw. Lunging forward he stabs Kruger twice.
In response the demon kicked Frank in the gut.
Flying backwards he lands in a pool of blood. Arms extend and scratch Frank. Cursing, he swipes a knife around to break out of the trap.
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"Pathetic! You think banding together will save you?"
"It worked generations ago didn't it?"
"The parents got lucky." Kruger's blades flex in intense light. The flames mimic his temper. "And by then it was too late. I'll always return."
Though weary, Quentin learned many tricks by walking in dreams. If he can endure a little longer, he can defeat Kruger.
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Crude oil drips from the walls. The world becomes nothing but darkness.
Beyond tangled blood-arms Frank sees Quentin gift him a reassuring smile. A light spawns from the lighter.
"No, you're not lighting-"
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The snare dissolves. Quentin pushed him. Tossing the lighter they run. Heat waves hurl them over the maze. The explosion is blindingly bright.
The world fractures and swirls. It still withstands damage.
"Is he dead?" Frank asked.
"No. We'd be awake."
Frank got up on his feet and warily sweeps his gaze across the ever-changing landscape.
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A figure charges out from lasting flames. Frank clutches his lover to pull him away. Freddy stabs Quentin, hooking him with razor claws.
A knife slices Kruger's neck straight down. Blood paints Frank's face. The smell of iron overpowers the gigantic fires and burning oil.
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Sobbing, Frank holds Quentin. Smith doesn't flinch or react, as if numb from the fresh wounds. His breath hardly reaches past his lips. "It's okay."
"No, no it isn't! Don't…don't leave!"
"It'll be okay…because I'm with you."
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Unnoticed is the slow disintegrating of the dreamwalker's body. Like ash he chips apart, fracturing. Frank holds him until there's just air. All he can see now is his trembling hands.
In a breath he's back in reality.
Wearing the bloody varsity jacket, Frank goes into the woods. Rage energizes him as much as grief.
Among a still forest he collapses and bursts into tears. He hasn't cried like this in his entire life. Fingers rake through soil. Quivering, he stares up at a patch of night sky. Golden hues of dawn are approaching.
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"I'd trade anything to get him back. Please. If the Entity can hear me…I swear my loyalty to you!"
Silence.
Frustrated, Frank's about to bail. Then a powerful gust sweeps the woods.
Gurgling whispers echo within towering flora. Slightly frightened and shocked, Frank turns to see a beast.
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A creature from the clouds. Pointy black tendrils lower towards earth. Like spider limbs. "Sacrifices…blood…" It whispered. Rusty hooks appear and creak in the wind. "Bring to…hook."
"How many?" Frank's grip on the knife turns his knuckles white.
"Four."
"Four?"
"If worthy," the Entity rasped. "You shall reunite and be immortal in my world."
"Understood…" Slithering into the night he followed the Entity's commands.
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Four. Exactly four people are in a row on hooks. Blood soaks the earth and is absorbed by smoky tendrils. Each person had committed unforgivable violent crimes. Frank enjoys their agonizing screams.
While cleaning his blade he waits for the Entity to appear.
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"Hey there he is!" Susie exclaimed. She runs and jumps onto Frank, unaware of the danger around them.
"Ugh! S-Susie? Joey?"
Almost always set in a neutral expression, Joey studies the area. "So this is what you've been up to. The myth about the Entity is real…"
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"You're not gonna leave us are you?!" Susie cried. "People get spirited away in this forest!"
"I…"
"It's for someone special. I get it." Joey chuckled. He helped Frank up and swapped familiar hand-shakes. "Why didn't you ask us for help?"
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Bewildered, Frank stared. "Y-You're fine with this?!" His arm waved at the hooks and criminals on them.
Joey smiled. "You're such a fool, man. There's nowhere else Susie and I would rather be. We're the Legion."
Melancholy gleams in Susie's eyes. "Without you we'd have nowhere to belong to."
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Entity's arms impale the people, and accepts the sacrifices. Fog arrives.
"We'll be with you anywhere you go."
"And hey," Susie giggled. "This new dimension maybe better than the old!"
Frank smiled gratefully and he pulls his friends into a group hug. They're cloaked by darkening smoke.