"We're back!" Dani shouted as she jumped out of the back seat of Ecto-1.
Resounding silence answered the young woman.
"Janine's not at her desk," Ray pointed out. "What if something happened?" Winston saw the look of fear in his friend's eyes.
"She could have gone out," Winston replied. "Or she's upstairs with Egon. There are a million places she could be, Ray. Let's not jump to conclusions if we don't know anything."
"I'm gonna go upstairs and make our special cocktail," Dani said. "I highly doubt Egon remembered where I put the blender." She started towards the stairs, but Dr. Stantz grabbed her arm.
"You shouldn't go up there alone," Ray told her.
"Than come with me," she responded. "There isn't a lot of time to dawdle."
"I'll keep an eye on things down here," Winston said. "Shout if you two need anything." He saw the look Ray held. "Just in case, Ray."
"Okay." Ray ushered for his girlfriend to go up the stairs. They left Winston's field of vision from the ground floor and he let out deep breath.
"God, I hope this works," Zeddemore muttered. He trusted the judgments of his friends, but if they didn't help Peter fast something drastic could happen. Winston didn't want to see anyone get hurt. The man just had this sinking feeling. It didn't help that the entire way back from Forbidden Planet Ray and Dani had sat in the backseat talking in hushed voices. He could make out a few words and that was all he needed to know. Peter was possibly a danger to them all now, but he didn't want to confirm the two younger peoples suspicions and scare them even more than they already were.
"Hey, Zed." The Ghostbuster turned around to find Dr. Venkman standing behind him. His hair was sticking up on all ends something Peter normally hated. The man's green eyes were both filled with looks of fear and determination at the same time. Winston spotted a few drops of blood on the man's white t-shirt and jeans. He'd been doing something while they were gone. Winston just hoped Peter hadn't done anything drastic.
"Pete, how's it going?" Winston asked trying to hide any worry in his voice. "Do you know where Janine is?"
"Yeah," Peter answered nonchalantly. "Are Ray and Dani upstairs having fun?"
"I don't know," Winston replied. He took a step back from his friend. "We should go up there and make sure they're okay."
"Not now." Peter pulled the gun from the waistband of his pants. Winston knew a dozen ways right off the bat of how to get the weapon away from his friend, but he was afraid that it would cause Peter to do something more severe. "Not ever again."
"C'mon, c'mon," Dani muttered as the drink mixed in the blender. She watched the liquid go around for a moment than shook her head as the swirling liquid made her a bit dizzy. "No more twisters, Dorothy."
"Is it done yet?" Ray asked. She glanced back at him. He was pacing back and forth nervously in the kitchen. Dani knew why. The two didn't know where Egon and Janine were and they had just left Winston by himself downstairs. No telling how crazy Peter had gotten and what he could possibly be doing. She silently blamed herself.
"Give it another minute," she answered. "Crushing up pills into a liquid takes time."
"I really hope this works," Ray said.
"It's going to knock him out," Dani replied. "We put enough dopamine in here to slow down an elephant. That added with the caffeine is going to create an interesting reaction. I sure hope he passes out." She stopped the blender and looked at her creation. "Close enough." The young woman opened a cabinet and pulled out one of Egon's special thermal cooler cups.
"Ray," Peter called out from somewhere nearby. "Hey, Ray, I need to talk to you." Dr. Stantz froze and looked at his girlfriend. She snapped the lid on the cup. "Dani, babe, we need to have a conference."
"Oh, God," Dani whispered. She started breathing heavily. Ray grabbed her by the shoulders. "It's happening. It's happening, Ray."
"We're going to stop it," Ray told her quietly. "We have to stop it."
"Stop what?" Ray spun around and found his friend walking casually into the kitchen. "Is it the end of the world? Again?" Dr. Stantz heard the hard sarcasm in the man's voice. "You were always eager to jump to those conclusions."
"Peter, we know what's wrong," Ray said. "Dani and I just want to help you."
"I'm helping myself, Ray," Peter responded. "I've got this under control." His mind drifted back to the hospital room where he was sitting in a corner banging his head against a wall. "I don't want to do this, mom. I can't do it."
"Please, dear," his mother pleaded. "You can do this." Peter shook his head and glared at the two people in the kitchen with him.
"I have to finish this now," Dr. Venkman told them.
"No," Dani said as she stepped around Ray. "It's not going to happen."
"Shut up," Peter growled. "You're just another figment of my imagination. I don't even know where the hell you came from. You have no purpose of even being here. You make no sense."
"I make no sense?" She repeated. "You're the one that wants to kill everyone. Ray and I can stop it."
"I'm stopping it," Peter replied. "Quit pushing me." He grabbed his head. "I have to make it all go away." The Ghostbuster slammed his fist on the counter. "I have to destroy it. I have to go home." Ray went up to his friend.
"You are home, Peter," Dr. Stantz said. "This is real. Dani is just as part of this reality as the counter. You can feel it and touch it." Peter looked at him.
"That's because I made it up," Dr. Venkman responded. He pointed to his head. "Everything in here is not real. I want to go back to the real world, Ray. I can't live here anymore. My mom and dad want me back."
"Your mom's dead, Peter. We went to her funeral."
"NO! She went to yours!"
"I'm not dead, Peter," Ray said gently. "This is real. It's always been real." Peter looked at the young man and considered the thought for a moment, but than heard his mother again and felt the cold floor of the hospital room.
"You can do it, Peter," Mrs. Venkman whispered. She gently touched her son's shoulder and he looked at her. "Fight it, sweetheart."
"Okay, mom." Dr. Venkman looked at Ray and punched him. The occultist hit the floor and Dani let out a yell.
"Peter, don't," Dr. Stantz told him. The youngest Ghostbuster touched his lip and felt the blood coming out of small split. "Think about this logically, Peter."
"There's no logic here!" Peter yelled. "You're just part of my head. I kept you alive because I couldn't deal and now I have to kill you to make it all better." Dr. Venkman pulled out the gun and aimed it at the young man on the kitchen floor. "I'm sorry, Ray. This is the way it has to be."
"No!" Dani shouted. She ran at Dr. Venkman and he turned the gun on her. It went off and she stopped short. The blonde gave Peter a surprised look than fell to her knees. She looked at Ray than hit the floor. The cup rolled of her hand and underneath the jutted out bottoms of kitchen cabinets.
"Dani!" Ray screamed. Peter grabbed his head again as all the voices twirled around in his mind. "You killed her." Ray quickly stood up and took the man by the fronts of his shirt. "You killed her!" Dr. Venkman looked into his friend's eyes and saw the pain. Peter felt his own pain as he continued to bang his head against the wall in the hospital room. He heard the quiet sobs of his mother.
"I had to," Peter whispered. "I'm sorry, Ray. It had to be done."
"No it didn't. We were going to help you. You just needed to listen."
"I'm not listening to you all anymore. I have to help myself. You aren't real." Dr. Stantz let go of Peter. "I'm sorry, Ray. You have to understand."
"I can't, Peter."
"You have to go down to the basement," Dr. Venkman told him. "I need to finish this."
"Janine's not at her desk," Ray pointed out. "What if something happened?" Winston saw the look of fear in his friend's eyes.
"She could have gone out," Winston replied. "Or she's upstairs with Egon. There are a million places she could be, Ray. Let's not jump to conclusions if we don't know anything."
"I'm gonna go upstairs and make our special cocktail," Dani said. "I highly doubt Egon remembered where I put the blender." She started towards the stairs, but Dr. Stantz grabbed her arm.
"You shouldn't go up there alone," Ray told her.
"Than come with me," she responded. "There isn't a lot of time to dawdle."
"I'll keep an eye on things down here," Winston said. "Shout if you two need anything." He saw the look Ray held. "Just in case, Ray."
"Okay." Ray ushered for his girlfriend to go up the stairs. They left Winston's field of vision from the ground floor and he let out deep breath.
"God, I hope this works," Zeddemore muttered. He trusted the judgments of his friends, but if they didn't help Peter fast something drastic could happen. Winston didn't want to see anyone get hurt. The man just had this sinking feeling. It didn't help that the entire way back from Forbidden Planet Ray and Dani had sat in the backseat talking in hushed voices. He could make out a few words and that was all he needed to know. Peter was possibly a danger to them all now, but he didn't want to confirm the two younger peoples suspicions and scare them even more than they already were.
"Hey, Zed." The Ghostbuster turned around to find Dr. Venkman standing behind him. His hair was sticking up on all ends something Peter normally hated. The man's green eyes were both filled with looks of fear and determination at the same time. Winston spotted a few drops of blood on the man's white t-shirt and jeans. He'd been doing something while they were gone. Winston just hoped Peter hadn't done anything drastic.
"Pete, how's it going?" Winston asked trying to hide any worry in his voice. "Do you know where Janine is?"
"Yeah," Peter answered nonchalantly. "Are Ray and Dani upstairs having fun?"
"I don't know," Winston replied. He took a step back from his friend. "We should go up there and make sure they're okay."
"Not now." Peter pulled the gun from the waistband of his pants. Winston knew a dozen ways right off the bat of how to get the weapon away from his friend, but he was afraid that it would cause Peter to do something more severe. "Not ever again."
"C'mon, c'mon," Dani muttered as the drink mixed in the blender. She watched the liquid go around for a moment than shook her head as the swirling liquid made her a bit dizzy. "No more twisters, Dorothy."
"Is it done yet?" Ray asked. She glanced back at him. He was pacing back and forth nervously in the kitchen. Dani knew why. The two didn't know where Egon and Janine were and they had just left Winston by himself downstairs. No telling how crazy Peter had gotten and what he could possibly be doing. She silently blamed herself.
"Give it another minute," she answered. "Crushing up pills into a liquid takes time."
"I really hope this works," Ray said.
"It's going to knock him out," Dani replied. "We put enough dopamine in here to slow down an elephant. That added with the caffeine is going to create an interesting reaction. I sure hope he passes out." She stopped the blender and looked at her creation. "Close enough." The young woman opened a cabinet and pulled out one of Egon's special thermal cooler cups.
"Ray," Peter called out from somewhere nearby. "Hey, Ray, I need to talk to you." Dr. Stantz froze and looked at his girlfriend. She snapped the lid on the cup. "Dani, babe, we need to have a conference."
"Oh, God," Dani whispered. She started breathing heavily. Ray grabbed her by the shoulders. "It's happening. It's happening, Ray."
"We're going to stop it," Ray told her quietly. "We have to stop it."
"Stop what?" Ray spun around and found his friend walking casually into the kitchen. "Is it the end of the world? Again?" Dr. Stantz heard the hard sarcasm in the man's voice. "You were always eager to jump to those conclusions."
"Peter, we know what's wrong," Ray said. "Dani and I just want to help you."
"I'm helping myself, Ray," Peter responded. "I've got this under control." His mind drifted back to the hospital room where he was sitting in a corner banging his head against a wall. "I don't want to do this, mom. I can't do it."
"Please, dear," his mother pleaded. "You can do this." Peter shook his head and glared at the two people in the kitchen with him.
"I have to finish this now," Dr. Venkman told them.
"No," Dani said as she stepped around Ray. "It's not going to happen."
"Shut up," Peter growled. "You're just another figment of my imagination. I don't even know where the hell you came from. You have no purpose of even being here. You make no sense."
"I make no sense?" She repeated. "You're the one that wants to kill everyone. Ray and I can stop it."
"I'm stopping it," Peter replied. "Quit pushing me." He grabbed his head. "I have to make it all go away." The Ghostbuster slammed his fist on the counter. "I have to destroy it. I have to go home." Ray went up to his friend.
"You are home, Peter," Dr. Stantz said. "This is real. Dani is just as part of this reality as the counter. You can feel it and touch it." Peter looked at him.
"That's because I made it up," Dr. Venkman responded. He pointed to his head. "Everything in here is not real. I want to go back to the real world, Ray. I can't live here anymore. My mom and dad want me back."
"Your mom's dead, Peter. We went to her funeral."
"NO! She went to yours!"
"I'm not dead, Peter," Ray said gently. "This is real. It's always been real." Peter looked at the young man and considered the thought for a moment, but than heard his mother again and felt the cold floor of the hospital room.
"You can do it, Peter," Mrs. Venkman whispered. She gently touched her son's shoulder and he looked at her. "Fight it, sweetheart."
"Okay, mom." Dr. Venkman looked at Ray and punched him. The occultist hit the floor and Dani let out a yell.
"Peter, don't," Dr. Stantz told him. The youngest Ghostbuster touched his lip and felt the blood coming out of small split. "Think about this logically, Peter."
"There's no logic here!" Peter yelled. "You're just part of my head. I kept you alive because I couldn't deal and now I have to kill you to make it all better." Dr. Venkman pulled out the gun and aimed it at the young man on the kitchen floor. "I'm sorry, Ray. This is the way it has to be."
"No!" Dani shouted. She ran at Dr. Venkman and he turned the gun on her. It went off and she stopped short. The blonde gave Peter a surprised look than fell to her knees. She looked at Ray than hit the floor. The cup rolled of her hand and underneath the jutted out bottoms of kitchen cabinets.
"Dani!" Ray screamed. Peter grabbed his head again as all the voices twirled around in his mind. "You killed her." Ray quickly stood up and took the man by the fronts of his shirt. "You killed her!" Dr. Venkman looked into his friend's eyes and saw the pain. Peter felt his own pain as he continued to bang his head against the wall in the hospital room. He heard the quiet sobs of his mother.
"I had to," Peter whispered. "I'm sorry, Ray. It had to be done."
"No it didn't. We were going to help you. You just needed to listen."
"I'm not listening to you all anymore. I have to help myself. You aren't real." Dr. Stantz let go of Peter. "I'm sorry, Ray. You have to understand."
"I can't, Peter."
"You have to go down to the basement," Dr. Venkman told him. "I need to finish this."