A Nightmare Reborn: FVJ 02

Rowan took a pad of paper from her pocket, "The officer's that caught Jason... their names?"

"Officers Sean Renaud and Tessa Alexander," he said as a tight sadness gripped his heart. He added, "They're in the basin with Jason. Be gentle with them. They've earned their rest."

"Of course," she wrote the names down and then whispered, "And Freddy Krueger?"

"He's dead," Loomis looked out at the smoky sky, "He's gone for now."

"He never existed?" she suggested.

"No," Loomis shook his head, "He was never here."

"I understand," Rowan said.

Loomis smiled weakly and wondered if she truly did.

He thought not.

***

FIVE DAYS LATER

Lori stood in the Springwood Memorial Cemetery alone.

The sun was bright and shining, most of the smoke from the fires cleared out by the prevailing winds to the north. There was still the smell of smoke and destruction in the air, but it didn't matter very much now. The city of Springwood was dead, burned and buried under a heap of rubble and ash. Lori had hoped it would stay that way, but she had already heard rumors of plans to begin rebuilding as soon as that coming fall. There were only two places in the city that hadn't been destroyed by the fires; the power plant and the cemetery.

Lori thought there was a certain irony to that, but she had to let it go. In the days following her interviews with the police, state officials and the FBI she and Dr. Loomis had covered up the involvement of Freddy Krueger and pinned the crimes on Jason and Michael Myers. With a little help from Dr. Rowan, their stories were airtight and the government let them go five days after the battle in the power plant.

There was still a nationwide search going on for Michael Myers. The governor of Ohio had posted a reward of $100,000 dollars to the person who led the authorities to the serial killer. There were news reports about bounty hunters from all over the entire world showing up in the United States to hunt him down as well as mass sightings everywhere from Sacramento, California to Albany, New York. Like Loomis, Lori imagined that the search would be fruitless. Based on the news so far, she had no reason to believe otherwise.

As Loomis had pointed out to her, Michael was nothing if not stealthy.

Rowan had left shortly after the inquest wrapped up. With her, she took the prisoner of the year Jason Voorhees. He had survived his blow to the head (much to no one's surprise) and was still as angry and deadly as ever. They had chained him and locked him tightly for the transport to a protected facility where Rowan promised they would find a way to kill him. Lori trusted Rowan implicitly, though she knew her comfort was partially due to the trust Loomis had in her. Rowan had even talked about establishing a research facility at Crystal Lake in a better effort to understand Jason.

"The devil's always in the details," she had said to Lori the last time she saw her, "Maybe if we can figure out what keeps him alive in this environment, we can break his immortality."

Lori agreed with that.

In front of her stood four headstones, three old and one new. The first three belonged to the long dead members of the Johnson family; Alice's father, brother and son Jacob. Next to Jacob's headstone was the memorial to Alice Johnson. Lori had paid for the funeral herself from the money she and Will had been saving for a vacation to the Bahamas later that winter. Since there was going to be no vacation, Lori thought it was fitting that the money be used to honor her friend. Inscribed on the headstone was this:

Alice Lisa Johnson

Beloved Mother, Daughter, Sister, Wife and Friend

September 15, 1970 -- May 17th, 2005

And below this was an inscription that read:

"...Once and always the Dream Master..."

Lori had been hesitant at first to use the term "wife" as Alice and Dan Jordan had never had the chance to get married. But she also knew from what Alice had left with her that they would have if they had been given the chance, and that they would have been great together. She hoped Alice would have appreciated the gesture.

Lori placed three red roses on the fresh earth of her grave, one for Alice, one for her father and one for Will. Like her father in the inferno on Elm Street, Will's body had been burned to cinders and ash in the fire. So she buried his memory here with Alice where he could be safe.

"I love you both," she kissed her fingers and then pressed it to the delicate petals of the flowers.

Lori shivered though it was not cold and stepped back from the graves. A breeze caressed her pale skin and carried her blonde hair to one side. She slipped her hands into the pockets of her jeans as her blue flannel shirt fluttered in the wind. She thought of Will and remembered how much she loved him. She wanted so badly just to see him one last time, even for one second.

She mourned her husband and her lost friend for what seemed like an eternity and then let them go. She released them from her heart and turned away from them. She could carry their memory with her, but she couldn't carry the burden of their deaths. It wasn't what either of them wanted and it was what Alice had warned her so passionately about.

"Good-bye."

Lori closed her eyes and breathed in deeply as her skin tingled in a release of spiritual pain.

"Hello Lori."

Lori didn't have to ask who it was. She recognized the accent and the kindness in his voice. Loomis smiled at her gently as he walked up beside her. Lori looked at him and smiled back. His presence was comforting, and there was something so wonderfully familiar and safe in seeing him again. He was dressed in his usual droll suit and dark overcoat, though he had shaved and trimmed his beard into a goatee. The knife wounds from Michael Myers had already begun healing, though he would be scarred for life. Loomis didn't seem to mind all that much. Like Lori, he was happy to be alive.

"Dr. Loomis," Lori hugged him.

"Are you well?" he asked as he returned the embrace.

She broke the hug and shrugged, "I'm... dealing."

"You're a survivor," he said to her, "And the world owes you and Alice a debt of gratitude that can never be fully repaid."

"They owe Sean and Tessa," Lori added, "And you, doctor. We owe you too."

The doctor nodded, somewhat embarrassed.

"Tessa's family arrived to take her back to Michigan this morning," Loomis cleared his throat, "She'll be buried in the family plot so I'm told."

"And Sean?"

"His brother, who lives in Oregon, has sent for him to be cremated and interred at the Springwood Memorial Monument."

"They're building a monument?"

"Yes," Loomis smiled, "And it will actually be constructed on the land where the power plant is. The governor has ordered the complex condemned and destroyed to make way for the largest park and wild life preserve in Ohio. It will cover the entire area of the city limits, save for the cemetery. Springwood will be given back to nature after all."

"That's fantastic," Lori said.

"Yes," the doctor nodded and put his hands in his coat pockets, "I believe your father and Alice would have been very pleased."

"I think so too."

Loomis took a deep breath and then looked to Lori, "Tell me, eh... where will you go from here?"

Lori began walking, her arm linked around the crook of Loomis' elbow, "I'm not sure. Probably back to New York. I make a pretty good living there as an accountant."

Loomis tilted his head, his brown eyes bright with curiosity, "Might I suggest an alternative?"

Lori glanced at him doubtfully, "Like what?"

"Well," he said, "With all that has happened, naturally I'll be writing my memoirs and I'll need someone there to refresh my memory and help keep track."

"A secretary?" Lori asked.

"A glorified secretary," Loomis laughed, "Actually, I was thinking of an assistant. You'd make a fine criminal psychologist given your experience."

"You can't afford me, doctor," she patted his arm.

"And if I doubled you current salary?"

Lori looked him, her eyes wide and a half smile on her full red lips, "You're serious?"

"Always," he replied as they walked down the grassy knoll leading to the road.

Lori thought for a moment and then looked around her. Springwood was gone, all around them was the blackened burned out husk of the once thriving city. Soon, there would be no remains of the houses and buildings Freddy had haunted for so many years. Only animals and occasional visitors would be coming through here. Freddy's reign of terror ended when the body in which he festered burned and blew away. The diseased vessel of Springwood was gone, and thus he had nowhere to go or to hide. What began with the locals taking the law into their own hands ended with the death of their city. It had come full circle. It was done.

"There's no need for me here now, is there?" she asked as she surveyed the charred horizon. It was so flat, so featureless and twisted. Only the lone silhouettes of house frames and scorched trees and burnt cars dotted the landscape.

"No, I imagine not," Loomis agreed, "But you are the Dream Master now."

"Yes," she said and then asked, "If he comes back?"

"Something tells me that if he ever comes back," Loomis said, "You'll be the first to know. Either way, he won't be coming here."

Lori looked out across the smoldering city one last time and then at Loomis. She said, "I accept."

Loomis grinned, his smile lighting up his kind eyes, "Excellent."

Lori felt so safe at that moment, a feeling she hadn't know but a few times before. And that was only with Will. Now, she felt it with this unassuming man who was almost twice her age. It wasn't unbridled love or passion she felt for him or the budding of a romance. No, it was too soon to even consider that. Rather, it was a deeply affecting admiration and love as only two true friends can feel. It was the kind of connection that only two survivors could know. She and Will had shared it and Alice and her had shared it. Now, she shared it with Loomis.

"Shall we?" she offered him her hand, and then added, "Matthew?"

Loomis smiled and took her slender fingers into his own.

"Indeed."

***

EPILOGUE

In Haddonfield, Illinois Ray Carver and his mistress, Josie Burke were enjoying their limited time together. Josie had just purchased the old Strode house from the city with her first advance on her fifth novel, "Shock Therapy." She had gotten it cheap, and it was a fixer upper opportunity to be sure. But Josie thought it had charm. And it was a great place for Ray to come when his battle-axe of a wife Lydia was making his life hell.

Ray was laying flat on his back in her bedroom, bare ass naked with his face buried in the folds of her cleanly shaved pussy. He darted his tongue in and out of her cunt, lapping at her and trying his best to make their quickie a quickie to remember. Josie, for her part, was on her hands and knees in the classic sixty-nine position as she sucked on his long, hard cock. He was trying his best not let go too soon, but her throaty moans were vibrating his shaft violently and bringing him closer to his orgasm.

"Okay," she huffed, "I'm ready."

"What?" he moaned as she began to move.

"Sex, now."

"Patience," she smiled and stood up, "Let me grab a rubber from the bathroom."

"Are you kidding?" he groaned, "Come on. I can pull out..."

"Yeah, and when I end up pregnant you can sing that all you like," she walked into the bathroom. She flipped the light on and was surprised to find it didn't work. She frowned and then felt her way to the counter. The drawer pulled out and she fumbled through her toiletries until she found the small foil package.

"There we go," she smiled. From the bedroom, she thought she heard Ray say something. She turned and called out, "What was that? I didn't hear you."

No reply.

"Ray?" she called as she opened the condom wrapper and tossed the used package in the trash, "Hello?"

Holding the blue ribbed condom in her hand, she walked back out into her bedroom and found Ray sprawled out on the bed. His chest was ripped open wide, revealing his ribs and underlying musculature. His dark eyes were closed and mouth popped open in a silent scream. Josie stepped back and dropped the rubber to the floor as her chest hitched and her bladder let loose.

"Oh fuck!" she cried and then felt a strong hand cover her mouth and pull her head hard to the right. There was a crunching sound at the base of her neck and a flare of heat before everything went black.

Michael Myers stood alone in the bedroom of his childhood home, enraged and ready to begin anew.

***

In the back of the heavily armored van, surrounded by six very angry and very serious guards armed with assault rifles, Jason Voorhees rode to his new home. Heavy chains were wrapped around his arms and legs, tightened and held with thick padlocks. He could feel the straps of leather around his body restricting his movement. There was a thick, steel collar around his neck that kept him locked into the large, medieval looking dolly on which he was restrained.

Jason slept, his tired eyes bloodshot and his black heart thundering. As his uneasy slumber overtook him, he dreamed he was back that the lake. It was the time of the day when the sunset and the night came, when Jason would usually emerge from his hiding and hunt. He walked the shoreline of the lake, his machete in hand and his mask securely fastened over his hideous face.

Here, he was safe.

To his surprise, he saw a man in a long, dark coat walking towards him. Jason gritted his teeth and began walking faster, ready to kill the intruder. The man in the black overcoat made no move to escape and as Jason came closer he saw that the stranger was wearing a matching dark hat with a wide brim. Jason suddenly became suspicious as he stomped along the shoreline. When he reached the stranger he swung with his machete as hard as he could.

The blade passed through as though it had been swinging at smoke. The man in the fedora looked up and grinned a horrible leer at Jason. Yellow eyes alive with irony and glee mocked him as the stranger whipped his right hand out and revealed a set of five bladed fingers. It was the dream killer.

It was Freddy Krueger.

Only it wasn't Freddy as Jason remembered him.

"Mind if I hitch a ride, Voorhees?" Freddy chuckled and then swiped at Jason's face as he began building the new nightmare, "We're gonna have some fun..."

***

The man closest to Jason was the one who screamed first as the killer woke up, startled and furious. He watched with his colleagues as five long slash marks stretched out across the hockey mask as if though wrought by magic. Jason stiffened up and then began thrashing against his bonds. The guards tried to steady him but Jason toppled over and crushed two of them against the wall under his weight.

The van jumped and swerved under the change in its load bearing, and the driver was unable to compensate in time. The white van skidded to the right and then toppled over, screeching down the lonely stretch of southern Michigan highway. The side of the van caved in as it crashed through the guardrail and slid off into the ditch that lined the pavement.

Though none of the men in the van lived to hear it except Jason, there was a satisfied laugh of manic approval floating in the wind.

THE END