Prologue - Evil Died That Night
"Evil died that night."
The citizens of Haddonfield, Illinois gathered in the junkyard where it happened. Laurie Strode, their symbol of hope, stood before them. "45 years ago, it came for me. It killed my friends. It tried to kill me. But I survived." The town nodded knowingly; the legend of Michael Myers was a ubiquitous part of their history.
"I waited," she continued. "For 40 years, I prepared myself for the night it would come to finish what it started. It didn't burn. It couldn't be beaten to death. It transcended anything mortal. And when it killed again, it infected this place with a paranoia that turned us into monsters. Still, it killed. It took our children, our heroes, our friends." Tears welled in her eyes. "It took Tommy Doyle - the same child I fought to save that very first night. It took my daughter, Karen."
A silence overtook the gathering. Grief hung in the air with a palpable tension. In a town as small as Haddonfield, nobody was left unscathed. For reasons unknown to any living person, Michael Myers had singlehandedly murdered nearly 50 people in just one night. Today, 5 years later, residents continued to lock their doors, wondering if the nightmare was truly over.
"A year ago today, it came one last time. And after so many years of fear, we finally put it to rest. Sheriff Barker, please do the honors."
Sheriff Barker, face hidden by the shadow of his wide-brimmed hat, stepped forward. Though he wore his uniform, his badge remained on his desk. This was not work for the town's sheriff - the hospital riots four years ago showed that this was something much more personal. The industrial shredder roared as he started it and Laurie held a white mask above her head for everyone to see. "Tonight we remember those we lost to it. We honor them. We greave them. But we remember that evil died that night."
"EVIL DIED THAT NIGHT!" The town cheered. Laurie Strode dropped the mask into the shredder. "For Karen. The evil is gone." Her eyes never left the mask as the shredder tore it to pieces.
Lindsey Wallace stepped forward, another white mask in hand. "For Tommy Doyle. The evil is gone." She dropped the mask into the shredder, tears dripping down her face. Dozens of residents - so many grieving mothers and fathers - stepped forward to drop a mask into the shredder for their loved ones. "The evil is gone," they all said. But did anyone really believe it? Hadn't Corey Cunningham proven that evil merely changed its face? Still, the procession brought hope to the residents of Haddonfield - and hope was something they needed. A year ago today, the town gathered to place the body of Michael Myers into a shredder. The town watched as evil died that night. Just as Laurie Strode was their beacon of light, the dark void behind the eyes of Michael Myers' mask was a cloud of fear hovering over the lives of any person he met. In the end, the light remained.
Laurie Strode walked home, hand-in-hand with her husband. The two of them had decorated their home with jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, and witches - a way of moving forward together. Still, they locked their door behind them. When trick-or-treaters would knock, she peered through the keyhole before answering the door with a smile to admire the costumes.