VAN HELSING
While everyone's focused on preparing for when we return to Hollowville, and my Hunting Party focused on forging the Ultimate Amulet in hopes of curing Cory and Lisa, I'm paying more attention to the main threat here: Slappy.
As stated before, there's only one person who knows the incantation needed to put him to sleep forever: Jimmy O'James. Problem is, he's trapped in Slappy's dungeon.
Slappy planned to use the Mind Staler to wipe his memories. Luckily, I destroyed his only means of getting that thing. But he could resort to other ideas, though. Like, what if he decides to KILL Jimmy? I need to rescue him before that happens.
But I need to know my enemy. I need to retrace all of his steps, walk miles in his shoes. See from his point of view. Problem is, he's been around for 200 years. And he's had run-ins with my family.
So I decided to start off somewhere simple: Back when he started to get serious in his schemes. The old Powell house. Where Lindy and Kris ended up running into his brother Mr. Wood. Slappy's had sixteen victims over his run, targeting kids, of course. I can start there.
But that's where another problem kicks in. The Powell house is back in Hollowville. Right in enemy territory. Well…I've got something for JUST this occasion.
I sit down and lay on a bed. And I focus all my magic. To everyone, it seems like I'm just resting. But in truth, it's a new skill of mine: Astral Projection.
I move around like a ghost. Extend a copy of my soul and wander about in an out-of-body experience. But I've only got an hour, while I'm chained to the Astral Realm. Luckily, I can pull back at any moment. And no monster can EVER spot me.
I spawn my projection in the barren empty streets of Hollowville. And I make a mental list of all of Slappy's previous owners. Lindy and Kris Powell. Amy, Sara, and Jed Kramer. Trina and Dan O'Dell. Jillian, Katie, and Amanda Zinman. Georgia and Stella Boonshoft. Britney and Ethan Crosby. Molly Molloy. Ray and Brandon Gordon. Jackson and Rachel Stander. Ian and Molly Barker. Luke and Kelly Harrison. Shepard and Patti Mooney. Aaron and Kristina Riggles. Cathy and Shannon O'Connor. Billy and Maggie McGee. Barton Suggs. Richard Hsieh. And finally, the Carlton family.
I head to each of their addresses, recalling the pattern. Slappy would try and force them to be his slave. When they refused, he'd cause all kinds of trouble. And the kids would be blamed. Besides, no one would believe that a ventriloquist dummy would be the cause.
Just as I expected, I found almost nothing. Nothing but lore and history. Mr. Wood was the main force for the first owners. He even proved to be more malicious than Slappy. Slappy would NEVER threaten to murder someone. But he still had some use for Mr. Wood. Only Slappy could revive others from, say, getting crushed by a steamroller.
I even notice how Slappy got the idea to use the Mind Stealer: He survived its power himself. It's almost too easy, given how all the owners lived in the same town. Guess Hollowville's grown over the years.
I made it to the Harrison house with only 15 minutes left. That's when I see the posters. And I remember something. Their dad, David. He's a horror movie producer. Like Emory Banyon, R.B. Farraday, and Mr. Wright. But I'd have to give his films a B-movie rating. Possibly even a C or Z Movie rating…
I mean, come on. Attack of the 2,000 Pound Dachshund? The Creature From The Cincinnati Suburbs? It Came From Beneath My Bed? I Married A Dummy?! Even Johnny Cage's movies look like blockbusters compared to those!
Suddenly, I sense something. Another presence! A darker one…
"Pretty stupid, aren't they?"
I whip around. Whatever's here can still see me! I ready my twin pistols when I notice who it is: SLAPPY!
Hold on…wait, that's not him? Slappy has GREEN eyes, not brown ones! And he has a chip on his chin, not his forehead. And he DEFINITELY doesn't have a gap between his teeth. Besides…that didn't sound like Slappy at all…
"You're Snappy…" I recognize. "One of Slappy's brothers. How's the family?"
"Oh, terrible as always. Wally's gotten himself a bride of his very own." Snappy chortled. "She's just as evil, and it's perfect!"
He's trying to act like a nice and harmless guy. Yeah, right. Like that'll work on me.
"Abigail, huh? Dylan wasn't an ordinary kid. As she found out the hard way." I replied. "So…what's with the makeover?"
"This is Slappy's world now!" Snappy replied. "You only SCREAM in it! Hahahahahaha!"
Maybe I can interrogate this guy. See what he knows about Slappy…
"If you really think Slappy's so great, why are you helping him?" I ask. "Last I heard, the dummy family had a habit of stabbing each other in the back."
"Oh, we were just jealous of how nasty Slappy was!" Snappy giggled. "He's so wonderful, he could just kiss himself! But hey, he might get splinters. The only thing almost as handsome as his face is his face in a mirror! He's so bright, you need sunglasses when he comes into a room! And he was the smartest one in his class because he was the ONLY one in his class!"
"And?"
"Do you know the only one smarter than him? Why, him, of course! I know that doesn't make any sense, but you don't want to be the one to tell me that, do you…Slave?"
"So where are these 'slaves'?"
"With his old owners, duh! Right in the dungeon! But where was I? Oh yes, Slappy's so bright, the sun hides when he comes out! He glows in the dark!"
"Alright then. What's his favorite holiday?"
"Why, his birthday!"
"What's his favorite birthday present? Of all time?"
"Oh, that? It was a pony."
…what?
"What?"
"Of course! It was…delicious."
Ah, THERE it is. Okay Abe, now for the slammer…
"Out of every single slave," I ask. "Which one is Slappy's favorite?"
"Oh! Well, that's a tough one?" Snappy chuckled. "I'd have to say…Jimmy O'James!"
"And why?"
"Well…he's not one to question any orders Slappy gives him! In fact, he can't question ANYTHING at all! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"He…Slappy rendered him MUTE?!"
"Of course he would! He got sick of the whining and complaining! It's an improvement if you ask me! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Damnit! Jimmy can't talk?!
"How do I know if you're lying?!"
"Sorry, but I'm afraid we're out of time for any further interview questions…"
What?!
I look back down at my astral chain. Crap! It's starting to break! Only ten seconds left! DAMNIT!
I force myself to wake up, panting heavily in anger. I was so damn CLOSE!
But still, info is info. But if Jimmy can't speak the incantation to us…he can still write it down! After all, not being able to communicate is impossible!
But what if Slappy breaks his fingers and makes him unable to write? Mr. Stine doesn't seem to recommend that.
That leaves one option left: His memory. Which is why Slappy wants that Mind Stealer! After all, Dylan said the words in only his mind, and that worked. Jimmy might not be able to even think it, but it's still in his head!
Maybe the Sleep Master can help me enter Jimmy's memories. But since Slappy's now the ruler of the Nightmare Realm, and getting more powerful than the Sleep Master, he might try to trick me…
Sigh. Back to Square One. Guess I have to resort to checking the various locations of his "slaves". Shepard and Patti should be next…
…
SLAPPY
"So…Stine's grandson is forming some kind of rebellion here, isn't he?"
"Yes, my master." Abigail states. "We have Body Squeezers patrolling all areas, trying to find their base. But they don't seem to be ANYWHERE."
"Well, keep LOOKING then!" I bark impatiently. "Find where they are! Meanwhile, I'll try to figure out where those fugitives are…"
Abigail left City Hall, just like that. Getting bored quickly, I conjured a magic orb where my old pal Vincent the Vicious popped up.
"Did you find that map?"
"Yes, my lord." Vincent stated. "But all we were able to decipher from it was that the Mind Stealer was somewhere in the Caribbean Sea. Because the fugitives managed to burn the map to ashes before retreating!"
"WHAT?! You IDIOTS! Get me that MIND STEALER! I don't care where it is! Just FIND IT!"
With a snap of my fingers, the orb vanished. That's what I get for having a bunch of DEAD guys doing my dirty work…
Hello, what's this? My old dear brother's paying me a visit!
"Ah, hello there, Snappy. You're late with my 30-minute-update on the status of my favorite slave. Tell me…is he suffering?"
"He's been robbed of his voice AND his ability to write! He can't even think that stupid incantation! And once we find R.L. Stine and the rest of the fugitives, well, you'll be glad to know that Curly has the PERFECT prison for them!"
My, that's a pretty big book! Aww, isn't that nice of him? Then again…I'm not known for allowing nice things…
"This is the ULTIMATE Mystic Manuscript!" Snappy announced. "Once it pulls them all in, they won't EVER escape!"
"Oooo, I LIKE it! I'll have my two evil Cory and Lisa clones do a few test drives on it. So once those dummies DO come back…we'll be ready…"
I only hear us laugh. Ahhh…this will NEVER get old! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
