[Chapter 192: The Killer in Dreams]
"Pleasure doing business with you!"
Daniel shook hands with Chris Gardner.
With that, Daniel secured the rights to The Pursuit of Happyness. Chris Gardner also promised to finish the autobiography as soon as possible. Once the book hit the market, Daniel planned to hire a marketing firm to boost its popularity even more. If the book became a hit, it would generate more traffic.
That's what they called an IP. This was how Hollywood studios operated. While some books made the bestseller list without a promoter, those cases were rare.
Both of these films were key to Will Smith's future. Now, Daniel had intercepted them both. Originally, I Am Legend had strong potential, but since it was a horror movie, it was destined not to appear in this world. Without those three works, Hitch would effectively be the last shining moment in Will Smith's career.
As an Ascendant, Daniel could have easily used a simpler method to deal with Will humanely. But that would have been boring. Intercepting someone else's Luck was not only satisfying but also intriguing.
...
Seeing that Daniel had obtained the rights, the Succubus grew interested.
"Master, when are we going to find someone to film Hancock?"
Daniel replied, "There is no rush. We can't make that movie now. It would definitely flop."
"Ah?" The Succubus looked puzzled. "Then how long do we have to wait?"
Daniel said, "Wait for next year's Superman Returns."
Next year, Superman Returns was scheduled to release -- and it would flop miserably. Only then would the audience lose interest in these traditional-style superheroes. That would be the right time to release Hancock.
The Succubus nodded. "Next year? Then if we start the project now and find people to film it, the timing will be about right. Movie production cycles are very long, especially for CGI-heavy films. Over a year is considered fast. Some movies even take longer. According to the data I checked online, any movie with a lot of special effects averages about 15 months."
Daniel thought it over and realized she was right. The process would include finding a distributor and setting a release date. He remembered Superman Returns was slated for June next year. Including a two-month public screening, that pushed their timeline to August. He really didn't have much time.
"You have a point. Let's get ready to start," Daniel said. "You registered a production company last time, right? We can produce this movie under that company's name."
The Succubus's eyes lit up. "Who should play Hancock? If we can't find a female lead, I can manifest a physical body to act in it."
Daniel shot her a glare. "You're an undocumented entity. What movie are you going to act in?"
The Succubus hurried to explain, "I can hack into the system and create an identity. I guarantee no one would find out."
Daniel shook his head. "No. Once your identity is public, what if a powerful being targets you? I might not be able to protect you."
Realizing he was right, the Succubus's expression fell with regret. "Oh."
"Contact the director first. Send a directing invitation to Peter Berg."
"Peter Berg, the director of Collateral?"
"That's the one."
"Okay."
In the study, Daniel's computer flickered with pink light again.
"Done," the Succubus said. "I already emailed him the Hancock script outline with the invitation."
Daniel nodded in satisfaction. The Succubus was becoming more and more useful. Keeping her around was definitely the right call.
...
Before Peter Berg could reply, Francia contacted Daniel.
When Daniel arrived at Cross Hall, he saw a new guest. She was alone, wearing a long trench coat wrapped tightly around her. But she looked utterly exhausted -- her eyes bloodshot, and her gaze flickering nervously as if afraid something was chasing her.
Despite her distress, she was still strikingly beautiful.
Jessica Alba.
The dream angel for countless people.
If not for the coldness and exhaustion radiating off her, plus a faint, almost imperceptible dark energy, people might have been more willing to approach her.
Daniel calmly walked over and sat opposite Jessica, speaking in a peaceful tone. "Miss Alba, I'm Daniel. Francia said you've run into some trouble?"
Jessica jerked her head up at the sound of his voice and looked at him urgently. Now, Daniel could see the bloodshot veins in her eyes clearly.
"Mr. Cross? I heard from Chris that you're a very powerful Exorcist. Can you help me?"
Her voice trembled with anxiety.
"Chris Evans?" Daniel asked.
Jessica nodded repeatedly. "That's him. We worked together on Fantastic Four last year, but it hasn't been released yet. He mentioned that a while ago, he had a strange experience, and you helped him resolve it."
Daniel hadn't expected two of the Fantastic Four heroes to run into trouble. These heroes weren't very reliable, were they?
"Yes."
Daniel studied Jessica carefully. "You're surrounded by a cold aura that doesn't belong to you. Your spirit is severely depleted, and your spiritual light is dim. Have you been unable to sleep lately? Always feeling like something is watching you?"
Jessica's eyes widened instantly, as if she found a lifeline. She leaned forward urgently. "Yes! That's it! But it's not just watching, it's hunting me."
"Hunting you?" Daniel's expression darkened.
What the hell! It had escalated from watching to hunting. How had Jessica escaped?
She continued, "Especially this past week, I barely dared to close my eyes. Whenever I do, I fall into a very realistic and terrifying dream... In it, there's always this horrifying man wearing a hat and a striped sweater, with sharp blades for fingers, chasing me! And the worst part is..."
Jessica's voice trailed off as she breathed heavily, too terrified to go on.
Daniel's expression shifted, and he finished her sentence. "The worst part is that when you wake screaming, matching scars actually appear on your body."
Jessica's eyes widened even more. "How... how did you know?"
"Don't worry about that right now. Keep telling me."
Jessica nodded. "I've seen doctors, but they found no physical cause. They said it might be somatic symptoms from stress or that I hurt myself in my sleep. But I know it wasn't me!"
Daniel nodded knowingly. These symptoms sounded all too familiar.
"Injuries in dreams... scars in reality," he said. "This usually means you're dealing with a nightmare, or worse, a Nightmare Entity. Tell me more about the man chasing you. Aside from the blades for fingers, does his face have severe burn marks?"
Jessica gasped. "You... you know about that? Yes. His face is terrifying, like it's been burned in a massive fire. He always wears a cruel, mocking smile."
"He calls himself... Freddy!" Jessica whispered, shuddering. "And he's always singing this terrifying nursery rhyme."
There was no need to ask further. Jessica had said the name herself.
What she was up against was Freddy from A Nightmare on Elm Street.
This evil spirit fed on human fear, growing stronger by tormenting and killing people in their dreams. Worse, it could cause injuries from the dream to appear on the body in reality.
*****
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