Haunted Sleep

An extra thanks to Duskford for letting me use the old At the Cabin dream names. Mixed with the new, it makes the dream even trippier.

The flash of lightning and the crack of thunder pleased the young doctor standing in front of the tall window. The storm approaches, and soon my plans shall come to fruition. Rubbing his hands together one last time, his attention shifted from the dark horizon back to the enormous room he stood inside.

No expense had been spared in outfitting his laboratory with the latest fantastical scientific achievements. Electron tubes, gas-filled discharge tubes, and a Tesla coil filled the room in a maze of wires, tubing, and chemical beakers. All necessary in a brilliantly mad plan centered on what lay on an eight-foot-long platform. There resided a sculpture of clay crafted by the finest artist in the land. A clay infused with a unique element discovered in a meteorite that crashed long ago in Wasp Lake.

"Soon...oh, so soon, I shall bring life to you, my future consort," the young man said to the human-shaped clay. An urge to reach out and caress the future woman passed as a loud noise sounded off in the distance. "That's no storm."

Turning briskly, he searched the shadows of the large, cavernous room for his servant. "Gavgor!"

"Yes, master," a scrawny young man responded, his frail, pale body leaning over.

"What is that ruckus?"

"I shall find out, master."

"Do so, and be quick. My time approaches."

While his loyal, trusted servant limped away, the young scientist walked toward a second door. Opening it, his eyes admired the lush figure of a young redheaded woman resting on a bench. Her black lattice dress beckoned many a man to stare at the edges of her pale globes, but he knew that action brought danger. The woman was a sorceress and one not to be trifled with.

"My dear, Chlopatra, it is time to begin," he said, bowing to her out of great respect.

"I've already begun, Dr. Zackenstein. The mystical arts must be called forth well in advance. Already their energy flows into my body and soon into your vessel of love," Chlopatra explained curtly.

"Of course, I meant no disrespect, old friend. I find myself growing impatient as the time grows closer.

Patting his cheek, the sultry sorceress stared into his eyes with concern. "I offer you one last chance to not go down this path, Dr. Zackenstein. Misfortune merely waits to strike down this deed."

"I can not do that, Patra. My heart yearns to be fixed by any means possible."

"Then you shall have your Bride of Zackenstein," the red sorceress remarked, resigned to his determination.

"Shall we," Dr. Zackenstein prodded, waving his arm toward the open door for her to enter first.

Reentering the laboratory, the young scientist noticed several new developments. First, the light rain had strengthened, now pounding against his family's lakeside castle. Second, the lighting streaks seemed to be everywhere in the dark sky. And thirdly, Gavgor hurried back, moving far faster than his master had seen him move in years.

"Master! Master! The townsfolk are outside. Torches and pitchforks!"

"The cursed fools. Where is Orion? He shall be their doom!" Dr. Zackenstein vowed.

"I know not, master," Gavgor whimpered, fearing his master's wrath.

"Find him!" the lord of the manor demanded until another thought crossed his mind. "Wait! Who leads this angry mob?"

"Constable Nevin is among them, but Farmer Cole appears to be leader," Gavgor informed him, moments before a loud bang sounded against the front door.

"Who? It matters not. They plan to breach the door! Hurry, they must not foil my plan," Dr. Zackenstein declared, rushing over to pull the long chain that opened the hole in the ceiling.

With the rain now pouring into the laboratory, he ran back to his patchwork life-bringing device. Turning multiple knobs and pouring the final chemical concoction, he raced back over to perform what should've been Gavgor's task. Slowly Dr. Zackenstein turned the crank that raised the platform with the clay figure to the hole in the ceiling.

"Master!" the shriek came as a loud cracking sound filled the castle. The great wooden door had splintered. Soon the angry mob of townsfolk would be in the foyer.

"Can you provide any assistance?" Dr. Zackenstein asked the witch at his side, who intently studied her spellbook.

"Your plan requires my full concentration," Chlopatra snapped but then relented slightly. "I shall try if I can."

"Master!" his servant screamed as he tumbled into the room.

"Shut the door, Gavgor!"

"Too late, monster! Your wicked ways end here and now!"

The new voice startled Dr. Frankenstein. Mostly because he didn't recognize it nor its owner, that led him to ask, "Who might you be?"

"You know damn well who I am, miscreant!"

"Uh, no. Your countenance is unfamiliar."

"You killed my brother, Dustin Lewis, you foul scum!" Captain Shawn Lewis accused, confused how Dr. Zackenstein couldn't place his name or face. The evil scientist had set assassins on his trail.

"I beg your pardon, Captain...Lewis, was it? You may be at the wrong castle. There are several others along these shores. Perhaps Lord Diamond? He is known to wear women out until they expire."

"Master, I believe his brother was your beloved's betrothed," Gavgor informed meekly.

"Ah, I see you've altered your face and name, Captain Taft," Dr. Zackenstein said to the man he believed to be Roderick Taft.

"Taft? My name is Lewis. Argh! I will avenge my brother," Captain Lewis screamed as he raced forward with his sword.

Unfortunately for the enraged military officer, a black blur slammed into him. Teeth found an artery below the skin of his neck.

"And you shall join your brother in the underworld," Dr. Zackenstein gloated as Orion, a black cat, made quick work of his prey.

BANG

The musket shot missed the scientist's head by several inches. Luckily for him, the man firing the musket hadn't been a trained officer like Captain Lewis/Taft but was a local farmer.

"You'll need to do better than that, peasant!"

"I'll kill you with my bare hands--ahh!" Farmer Cole screamed as Gavgor bite his arm.

"Hurry, Mistress of Magic," Dr. Zackenstein ordered, returning to the crank. More townsfolk appeared outside the room, blocked momentarily by Farmer Cole, attempting to shake the biting Gavgor off his arm.

"Accio. Alohomora. Expelliarmus. Expecto Patronum!" Chlopatra chanted, bringing forth a green light from her hand. It shot across the laboratory toward the townsfolk that had finally entered the room.

A petite, blonde maiden stepped forward several seconds before the green light could blast the angry mob. She held the ornate mirror from the parlor. The green light hit the reflective mirror, sending it back at its conjuror.

"No!" screamed Chlopatra, the sorceress, as the light enveloped her.

Time slowed down for Dr. Zackenstein. He watched as Chlopatra screamed, her dress tearing off as she transformed. While his old friend morphed into a hell hound, the young scientist noticed the local farm whose shot had missed now heaved a burning torch high into the air. Hitting the platform, it struck ablaze the clay figure.

"Victorian, no!" Dr. Zackenstein screamed in anguish.

"Dr. Zackenstein, you are hereby placed under arrest for...all matters of foulness," boomed the voice of Constable Nevin.

Noticing Gavgor slumped on the floor, Orion fleeing the room as gunpowder boomed, and were-Chlopatra escaping through a broken glass window, Dr. Zackenstein knew his plan had been foiled. Grabbing a hammer, he whipped the tool at the row of chemical tubes. The breaking glass released deadly chemicals into the air that quickly erupted in flames.

With the distraction, Dr. Zackenstein fled to a nearby door. Quickly shutting it behind him, he bolted it from the inside. Descending down narrow circular stone stairs, he sought his escape. Reaching the level under the cellar, he opened the solid, wooden door that led into his family's catacombs.

A secret passage ran along Wasp Lake, opening up near the Vanderhood horse farm. There he knew he could steal a horse, flee, and plot his revenge. With plans to avenge his failure already swirling his mind, Dr. Zackenstein didn't see the figure before it was too late.

A gorgeous woman stepped out of behind a stone pillar. Long, leather boots came up to her thighs with white leggings beneath them. A tight, white blouse along with a leather harness of some type pushed out and displayed her ample bust. Long, blonde hair framed a beautiful yet somber face.

"La-Lady Victorian!" Dr. Zackenstein sputtered in surprise. The woman he loved from afar for many years still took his breath away. Although she broke his heart, it still warmed at the sight of her. "You've lightened your hair."

"Stay right there, Dr. Zackenstein!" the blonde beauty commanded. Once a lady of the aristocracy, the death of her beloved fiancé had altered her life fundamentally. When a homunculus breaks your fiancé in half, that will forever change a woman. Abandoning her old life, Lady Victorian took to traveling the lands as a monster slayer.

"What are you doing here, my love?"

"Don't you dare call me that! I've never been your love. I never even knew you existed!" she shouted, fighting back tears. "Word traveled of your plan. I will not allow you to create a demonic doppelganger of myself. Not for your perverse pleasure!"

"B-But, my love, we can still be together. Nothing stands between us any longer," Dr. Zackenstein pleaded.

"I now know that you are the culprit behind Dustin's death," Lady Victorian revealed, as she also pulled out a crossbow from behind her back. Then, leveling it at him, she continued, "The time has arrived for the ultimate monster to be destroyed."

"Wait--ugh!" Dr. Zackenstein looked down in shot to see the crossbow bolt embedded into his chest, seeping the life from his heart. "But I loved..."

Sean woke up in a start, his whole body lunging forward. Gasping for air, his hand shot to his chest, searching for the arrow. Finding nothing, he sagged back into the hospital bed.

"Only a dream," he told himself softly. And a bizarre one at that!

"Honey, are you okay?" Bridget asked, rushing over from the bathroom door.

"Mom? Where...oh, hospital. What time is it?"

"Around midnight. Are you in pain?" she asked worriedly. Standing at the side of the bed, Bridget studied the monitor that showed his elevated blood pressure.

"A little."

"It's probably time for another painkiller. Let me--"

"No, wait. I...I'm fine for a few more minutes," Sean told her. "I only had a bad dream."

"A nightmare? That's understandable after what happened. Was it about the ice?"

"No, something else," her son responded, turning his face away from her.

Studying his body language, Bridget could tell that her son was troubled. "Honey, what's wrong? Is this about your father?"

"Not about Dad."

Reaching down, Bridget took hold of his hand. "Sean, did something else happen?" His mother then recalled another point that had been nagging at a corner of her brain. "Why were you by yourself in the woods?"

A combined sniffle and moan led Bridget to believe she guessed right. Gently squeezing his hand, she waited for him to talk.

"I've liked a girl for a long, long time, Mom," Sean revealed.

"Is this about Ramsey?"

"What?! You knew...dammit! Now I feel even more like an idiot," Sean groaned after turning to look at his mother in surprise.

"You're not an idiot, honey. Parents can tell when their child likes someone. And you've liked Ramsey for a long time," she tried to reassure him. "Did something happen between you and Ramsey?"

"Gawd, I'm such a fool," moaned her son. "Thinking that she could like me."

"Did she turn you down?" Bridget asked, her concerns coming true.

"No, I'm even more of a loser than I thought."

"Honey, don't say that. You are not a loser!"

"Well, what am I when the girl I've had a crush on for years doesn't even know my name. She called me John, Mom. She thinks my name is John!" Sean sobbed in revelation.

"John? The name your pre-school teacher called you? How could she think that?" Bridget questioned in befuddlement. She met Lacey's friend many times at Rachel's house. The girl knew Peyton even better. "How...how is that possible?"

"Because I'm a nobody! I'm not popular at school. I'm not a sports star. I'm just that quiet guy in class," Sean responded, throwing his arm over his crying eyes in shame.

"Sean Seamus Tarver, that is enough! I will not allow you to say those things about yourself," Bridget sternly told him, pulling his arm away from his face. "I don't know why Ramsey never bothered to learn your name, but that's not your fault. It is her fault, and she's the one that should be ashamed."

"Ashamed? Hahaha! She doesn't even know she got it wrong," Sean laughed at how awful his life now felt.

"Well, I guarantee she knows now," Bridget stated.

"That's great, and then I can feel even worse when she looks at me with pity."

"Honey, look at me. You're not a loser or a nobody. You're a son I'm proud to have raised. Smart, kind, and caring, you jumped right in to save Whitney. Never hesitated, did you? Yes, that's the part of my father that's in you," Bridget remarked with a small smile. "And kids like Austin might be called a sports hero at school for scoring a touchdown, but you're a real-life hero. You saved Whitney's life. And if Ramsey had known your name, then you wouldn't have been there to save her."

"I guess some good came from it," Sean admitted weakly.

"And if Ramsey is too stuck-up or self-centered to know your name, that's her loss," Bridget continued, growing more heated with each passing second. "Once word gets out about your heroism, every girl at your school will be lining up to get a piece of you."

"Aww, come on, Mom!" her son protested. "That's not going to happen."

"Honey, there are nurses--grown women--outside this room that are gushing over my handsome hero of a son. What do you think teenage girls will be thinking next time they see you?" Bridget waited for an answer, but Sean kept quiet. "I'm going to have to buy you an extra-large box of condoms to make sure one of those girls doesn't make me a grandma."

"Mom!"

"It's true, honey. Girls are going to be all over you now. You're about to learn there are more fish in the sea than Rammy," Bridget pointed out with a smile. She loved the part of being a mother where you made your kids feel awkward about sex. It made up for all the serious discussions she had with patients. "Do we need to have the birds and the bees talk again?"

"Mom! No, we do not!" Sean groaned in embarrassment. Then with a laugh, he told her, "Go get one of those hot nurses. I'd rather be knocked out by the painkillers than talk about pollinating flowers again."

"Okay...should I see if any of them are your type?" Bridget teased. She managed to duck in time to avoid one of Sean's pillows. "Just for that, you can wait until I get back to have your pillow back."

Pleased that her effort to cheer Sean up worked, Bridget chuckled as she walked around the bed. Whoops, luckily, it looks like we didn't wake Harvey or Whitney. I almost forgot they were there, Bridget thought as she walked past the sleeping girl and her father. Harvey didn't look comfortable at all, snoozing in his chair.

Lost in her concern over Sean, Bridget never noticed an eye quickly snap shut.

Sorry about the delays the last week. The last two chapters required planning over future scenes and some character creation. Also, I spent some time on a new project. There is a new crossover story posted that includes the Honey Hollow cast. So check out The Thundering Isle.