The Dream Hopper (Those Whom the Gods Wish to Destroy Book 2)

by Shawn Mackey

  “The defendant is a murderer who associates with murderers, and also kills these murderers,” Kyle said. “We've established this much. In most cases, this would be enough to warrant several life sentences. However, this is a special case, which calls for special circumstances. Ladies and gentleman, I bring to you the third and final witness. Back from the dead, I call Angela to the stand.”

  The audience's mad chatter provided an apt soundtrack for the next moment. I stood, utterly frozen in horror, as the doors opened. The woman, an impeccable recreation of the girl from my dream, gracefully walked to the stand, her blonde curls bouncing with each step. The cruel puppeteer in charge of this charade had taken special care in sculpting her beauty. Those blue eyes looked everywhere but at me. Not even a glance.

  “The previous testimonies established the defendant as a scoundrel,” Kyle said. “The current will expose his disguise.”

  “Shadow!” Todd shouted. The room may have reverted to bedlam. I was oblivious to all but Angela.

  “Can the witness name the defendant?” Kyle asked.

  “Yes,” she replied in her exact voice.

  “Well?” Kyle urged.

  “I'd rather not,” she said.

  “For what reason, Miss Angela?” Kyle asked.

  “It's far too offensive, and not easy on the ears. Just thinking it makes me long for my grave. I'd rather oblivion than utter such a repulsive sound.”

  “That's understandable,” Kyle said. “What's your relation to the defendant? Rather, what was your relation?”

  “He was my husband,” she said. “And the father of my unborn child.”

  “Unborn?” Kyle inquired.

  “I was six months pregnant,” she said. “He beat my brains in with his bare fists. I was dead before he cracked my skull, but that didn't stop the brute! I begged him to spare me, for the child's sake.”

  “His response?” Kyle asked.

  “His response,” she repeated, her eyes wide with horror as she recollected an imagined event: “In his exact words? ‘This is going to be more effective than a coat hanger.’ Those were the last words I heard him say. He was my husband! Why did he kill me? Why did he—”

  The audience's upheaval drowned out her voice. She continued to speak, but I couldn't decipher the words from her lips. After a hundred gavel cracks, the chatter gradually calmed, though Angela had long finished speaking.

  “What brought upon this episode, Miss Angela? Surely this wasn't his first bout of violence,” Kyle said.

  “Nor was it his last,” she said, extending her finger. She pointed to the back of the room and added: “He killed our friend as well.”

  Every head turned to the back of the room. It was empty. They took it as the ranting of a ghost and listened carefully as she continued.

  “He told me I wasn't real,” she said. “Only he was real. The rest of the world was a product of dreams. I knew he was a bit of a megalomaniac, but not on that level. In retrospect, I probably should have encouraged his delusions and escaped at night.”

  “Hindsight and foresight are two different things,” Kyle said, wagging his finger. “Though I suppose that matters little to the dead.”

  “You're on your way there!” I yelled. The judge's gavel curbed the crowd.

  “Please, keep that monster under control, else we'll have a repeat of this unfortunate incident,” Kyle said. “Though I doubt I'll be as easy a target as Miss Angela.”

  “I already smacked you around once today. I'm itching at the chance for another,” I said.

  “Order!” the judge boomed. “One more peep from the defendant and I'll initiate the execution at once. After all, this trial is a mere formality.”

  “And about to reach its conclusion,” Kyle said. “Miss Angela, what can you tell me about the defendant's realness? Does he even exist?”

  “He isn't real,” she said. “Because neither am I.”

  Angela was gone in a blink. The audience chattered endlessly, and I expected the dream to either end or my fuse to ignite until the judge finally slammed his gavel and regained order.

  “There's no such thing as ghosts,” Kyle said with a shrug. “Which is why I'm presenting our actual final witness. Todd, please come to the stand.”

  I had had enough of these sniveling worms. As Todd's bony frame teetered toward the front of the room, I imagined snapping him in half with the ease of a dead twig. He watched smugly as I quivered in fury. I needed release or my mind would collapse.

  “Will the plaintiff tell the jury his relation to the defendant?” Kyle asked.

  “He called me a fraud,” Todd shouting, jutting his bony finger at me.

  “Are you a fraud, Todd?” Kyle asked.

  “You're a psychic, Kyle. How about you tell me?”

  “Answer the question, for the jury's sake.”

  “I'm not a fraud,” Todd said. “Kyle can attest to that. He helped me create the dream machine. That's how we're here.”

  “And the defendant?” Kyle asked.

  “Part of our dream,” Todd responded. He let out a chuckle and added: “Look at him. Is he even a person? I bet he doesn't even know.”

  I glided across the room, enraged to a point I had never imagined possible. I plowed right through the bailiff toward Todd, howling like a blood-hungry lunatic.

  “You're a fucking dead man, pal!”

  Every tangible object bled black ooze. The substance snagged me inches from striking Todd. The audience instantly evaporated into a mist, leaving only Todd, myself, and Kyle. The latter was lifted to the ceiling by a black rope and entirely engulfed by the ooze. Seconds later, it rained pearly white bones and a pair of broken glasses.

  “Imposter,” a voice wheezed mockingly. I felt it come from the depths of my skull.

  “What the hell is that?” Todd screamed, quaking in a seizure as the ooze wrapped around his gaunt body.

  “Imposter,” the voice repeated. The ooze seeped into Todd's eye sockets and mouth. “This has gone on long enough. There’s no room for the three of us, gnat.”

  I was up to my shoulders in ooze. My body had gone completely numb. I tried to reach for the surface, but I couldn't tell if I was being held down or just unable to move through the muck. Everything blurred.

  “You,” the voice wheezed. “Old friend, you and I have much to discuss. You and the gnat are not so different. As I digest your flesh pound by pound, you will begin to understand.”

  Todd's head imploded. As we were ejected from the dream, I felt my entire body go numb and my vision go black.

  Chapter 13:

  The Nightmare

  For a moment, it was as silent as the void. Then I heard his voice:

  “We were once men. Your dream communicated this unbelievable notion. Yes, I watched your dream in its entirety. As you dissolve in my maw like meat, I’ve already digested most of your mind. You dreamed of a loathsome insect, driven to a life of petty thievery by his uncontrollable vices. Like all pitiable creatures, he found a much deserved death by drowning. However, this was only a dream. I’ve seen something more interesting: A vague memory, far more distant and more of a feeling, just perceptible enough to piece together an impression of past events. Allow me to provide my explanation, which I would be as bold as to call the truth.”

  “In another life, I set out to hunt you to claim vengeance. I followed you through the dreams of men for countless ages. In my relentless pursuit, neither of us found rest. I witnessed the nightmares of crumbing civilizations as you slithered through their minds and made them know true fear in the form of their gods. Your influence spread like an oily puddle on a lake's surface, gradually turning the crystalline pool into pitch black. This had gone on for so long; I could no longer recall the reason for my revenge.”

  “My indignation simmered to a rage with no particular target in mind. Every fiber of my being craved a terrible release. I sought to shatter a man's psyche, to crush any semblance of sanity his crude mind possessed. Just one ti
me, I would be a scourge on life. You were aware of this, and one day approached me with neutrality. The ball of goo I had grown to hate suddenly seemed pitiful in its slippery crawl. I expected an admittance of defeat and allowed you to engulf me partially.”

  “I reveled in the pain as you devoured me. My aching limbs were no more. I now slithered like a serpent, eager to release its venom on the first sight of prey. Our bargain was instantly forgotten. Another eternity passed while I continued to spread terror and anguish. In my boundless contempt, I had reserved a tiny portion especially for you—you who deprived me of something hitherto inexplicable.”

  “And now I’ve now grown tired of being feared and wish to walk upright as a man. You have a spine, while I drip like black pus. The flames of my malice had extinguished long ago. I need to leave this cold existence and find something warm. You once begged me for the warmth of human contact, and in that moment, I thought it made you the better man.”

  “I was wrong. You and your goal are equally empty. Aiding the dreamer certainly made my task more difficult, and in time, increased your chances of survival. Yes, your goal was always a survival mechanism. Along the way, you fooled both of us into thinking we were eternal pawns in the battle of good and evil. I’m even beginning to doubt these scenarios are dreams! Perhaps that’s an idea influenced by you and your underhanded trickery. It matters little, for our game has reached its last round with the charade finally ended.”

  “Fate grants me another chance. I may have lack the teeth to rend your flesh, but I will devour you all the same. Endure the pain and witness the truth.”

  -

  It started in the middle of a large crowd. The people were waiting outside a massive zeppelin decorated with hundreds of flags. Some were beginning to climb up the long staircase to board the cockpit. I was temporarily awestruck by its immensity. Not for long, since I already sensed your target up ahead. As the crowd assembled into a single file, I rushed a few paces and saw her from the distance. She wore a red, white, and blue trilby over her short brown hair. When our eyes locked, she raised both hands and waved.

  “Excuse me,” I said, barging through the crowd. A group of foreign thugs barred my way, their arms and chest covered in exotic tattoos. Rather than give them the fight they were looking for, I slipped right between the two smallest ones and toward your target.

  “Where were you?” she asked, frowning. According to the tag on her brown jacket, her name was Amanda. She was looking toward the thugs. “Were they troubling you?”

  “Not much,” I said. The largest among them stood a head taller than the rest. I saw you behind his black eyes. “They’re trouble.”

  “Don’t leave my sight again.”

  “I should say the same for you.”

  “You would, if you were doing your job properly!”

  “Sorry, ma’am.”

  “It's okay. Just call me Amanda.”

  Her tag was gold plated, and along with the stars and stripes pinned to her jacket, she was clearly a VIP. The signs, written in a plethora of different languages, repeatedly mentioned the United World Summit. I wasn’t as concerned about that as my showdown with you and your goons. It would be a good one, I thought to myself. We reached the ticket booth at the top of the long flight of stairs. After tearing our tickets, the man nodded and referred to Amanda as “the ambassador” with a short salute.

  The inside was larger than I had expected, and much like a ballroom lined with booths. Each had two seats and a small table with a tiny flag. We were led to ours by a young man in a military outfit. He gave another salute as we sat. When he walked away, Amanda let out a sigh and looked out the window. Roughly one hundred people still had to board. I managed to catch a glimpse of you just as you entered.

  “They look more like kung fu movie rejects than proper security,” Amanda muttered.

  “They’re meant to intimidate you. Don’t let them.”

  “I won’t until you do. Will you?”

  “Not in the slightest.”

  In truth, I was excited. You were a thorn in my side, and in recent time, I was under the impression that we would finally have our climatic showdown. It would be a relief to finally leave the endless nightmare. Once you were dead, I’d be permitted to return home. After all, we were once men. Only one of us had to die. Why not the most deplorable?

  “Ladies and gentleman,” a bespectacled man with a gray mustache said into a microphone. The zeppelin was finished boarding and everyone was seated. You were watching me from across the wide open floor, occupied only by the announcer. “Welcome to the first annual United World Summit and the first flight of the Phoenix! Yes, after a decade of strife, allow us to rise from the ashes of war and fly above all past squabbles. This will be a peaceful journey, from east to west. Our worldwide tour will end in Sweden, and with luck, will see the signing of—”

  His voice was cut off by the engines, so loud they rattled the entire cockpit. The man continued to speak, his words drowned out by the sound as we soared into the air. He stepped away toward the crew, who gathered near the large console, and proceeded to shout at a crewman flipping levers. The pilot repeatedly nodded while steering the wheel, the shouting still dimmed by the engine. It gradually died down, leaving a loud but unobtrusive hum.

  You were still eyeing Amanda, who continued to look out the window with a blissful smile. The other thugs were whispering to one another. The trip was going to be long, but I had no doubt they would strike soon.

  “Isn’t it a beautiful sight?” Amanda said. I checked the window and saw a sea of tall trees far below. We zipped over a large lake, which cast the colossal zeppelin’s reflection.

  “Are you armed?” I asked.

  “Of course not,” she said, her smile disappearing. “Is it those men? Call over the crew if you feel troubled.”

  “What could they possibly do?”

  “An absurd question! Well, what is it?”

  “See the big one,” I said, pointing at you. She looked with a nod.

  “Ugly as sin,” she said.

  “He’s going to be a problem.”

  As those words left my mouth, the center thug reached under his seat and pulled out a large gun. Before anyone else noticed, he stepped out of the booth and aimed it at the crew. A short burst of machine gunfire sent the men sprawling onto the ground, hitting the console and popping off the steering wheel. Every passenger on board chattered or screamed. When the lead thug shot out a few of the windows with another burst, many hid under their seats. Several of the thugs made their way toward the smoking console. One of them sprayed it with a fire extinguisher and managed to raise the zeppelin higher. The roaring wind was almost as loud as the engine.

  “Follow my instructions and no one else has to die,” the leader shouted, moving around in a circle, his gun pointed at his audience. “We just want the ambassadors to step forward. Move to the center. When they’re all accounted for, we’ll land. No one has to die. Not even the ambassadors.”

  “Why are you doing this?” an old man shouted. The leader fired at his feet.

  “Do as I say!” he shouted. Some of the ambassadors came forward.

  “Don’t move,” I said to Amanda.

  “So he can start killing hostages?” she said, her eyes flaring.

  “What do you think they’re about to do? I’m in charge of your safety. If you leave this seat, you’ll be full of holes in two minutes.”

  “Damn it,” she snapped, bowing her head down.

  “Where is the US ambassador?” the leader shouted. A few dozen had already lined up on their knees. “Does anyone want to tell me where the US ambassador is hiding? I’ll see that they’re rewarded for their cooperation.”

  You calmly walked around the hostages, across the floor and to our booth, then seized Amanda from under her arms and tossed her over your shoulder. As you made your way back to the leader, I got out of my seat and kicked the back of your knee. Amanda spilled out of your arms and crawled away.
The leader fired a burst and missed me, spraying bullets through the table and shattering the window. I punched you in the face, dodged your counter, and planted my knee into your stomach.

  The passengers seemed to be inspired by my courage, simultaneously leaping to their feet and charging the armed man. He gunned down many, though they managed to subdue a few of his lackeys. We were locked in combat. I landed punch after punch on your large body. You hit me once in the gut, which was almost enough. If it had been in the face, you would have gotten the knock out. You should have picked the guy with the machine gun.

  One of the ambassadors tackled the leader, who shot blindly in the air. The bullets broke through the roof and pierced the balloon. The engines let out a shrill squeak, then a thunderous rumble. The ambassadors managed to subdue the leader, tying him to one of the chairs. His henchmen at the console were surrounded. As the angry passengers leered in, the thugs turned and leapt out a window. The men at the console frantically flipped switched and pulled levers to no avail. The zeppelin was sinking.

  You abandoned the ship as well, climbing out the window like a coward. I followed you, despite Amanda’s protest, seeing no need to draw out our conflict any longer. As long as she stayed safe, this scenario would continue. I had plenty of time to follow. The air current was so strong, getting out of the cockpit proved harder than I thought. I managed to climb on top of the roof and onto the balloon, using the rippled flags as a ladder.

  Two thugs darted toward me. By some miracle, they were able to run from the top to the side, avoiding the air current. As they moved closer, the balloon rumbled. A hole opened up under one of the thugs, engulfing him in a jet of flames. He narrowly missed me, setting fire to some of the flags as he tumbled into the forest far below. The other thug came close, his foot slipping and tearing into the balloon, which let out a burst of air and sent him hurtling into the sky. I continued to climb, the flaming flags nearly catching up.

  You were waiting on top. I caught my breath as you approached, arms folded, covered in those glistening black tattoos. The fire was already eating through the balloon, smoke billowing from the cockpit below. There wasn’t much time. I half expected you to leap off. Instead, you charged, managing to seize me by the shoulders. I slipped out of my coat and uppercutted you in the chin, barely evading your next blow.