[Chapter 195: Breaking the Dream]
Jessica looked at Daniel. "Freddy didn't enter my dream this time?"
Daniel paused thoughtfully. "That guy is treacherous, cunning, and cruel... but he's also timid as a mouse. It's very possible he didn't change your dream on purpose, to make us think he's not following. In reality, he's hiding in the shadows, waiting for a chance to strike."
Jessica shivered and gripped Daniel's hand tighter.
"Let's go. Let's look around," Daniel said.
The two began to explore the eerie place.
The streets were empty; everything seemed dead. It was as if only the two of them were alive.
They searched the whole area but found no sign of Freddy.
Jessica, even in her dream, felt a bit tired from all the walking. "Mr. Cross, what do we do now?"
Daniel glanced around.
"Freddy!" Daniel suddenly shouted, "Come out! What's the point of hiding?"
No answer.
Only silence.
It felt as if only the two of them existed here.
Daniel's voice rose, charged with magical energy, echoing through the dreamscape.
"Freddy Krueger! You coward! You wimp! You sick little pervert who only dares to attack children and women!"
Jessica nervously scanned their surroundings as Daniel continued.
"You were a loser in life! After death, you can only bully the weak in dreams! You're a worthless piece of trash no one cares about! You deserve to be burned alive!"
"Go to Hell! Suffer the worst torment-, torn apart by wild wolves, gnawed by maggots..."
The more Daniel cursed, the more fierce and venomous his words became. Jessica couldn't help but turn and look at him, her face full of surprise.
She hadn't expected Mr. Cross to be so good at cursing.
Finally--
"Shut up!!!"
A ferocious roar tore through the dream!
The walls along the street suddenly peeled away, turning into scorched wooden boards.
Freddy emerged, his burned face twisted with rage.
"I'll rip your mouth apart! I will pull out your tongue!"
He'd completely lost control.
"In my dream, I'm a god! You'll experience the most painful death imaginable!"
Freddy raised his hands high, and the entire dream twisted and changed chaotically.
The ground turned into a mountain of knives, fire rained from the sky, and countless hideous monsters crawled out of the shadows, all lunging at Daniel.
Daniel held Jessica tightly, his expression steady.
"Freddy," he said disdainfully, "besides these tricks, what else do you have? Be... Gone!"
Daniel thrust out his palm. Thunder rumbled in the sky.
A gigantic hand made of countless lightning bolts descended.
Rumble!
Before the giant palm reached them, all the monsters shattered into nothing under its power.
The mountains of knives and the fiery rain dissolved as well.
Daniel sneered, "Is that all? Anything else?"
Freddy raged helplessly, clutching his head and hopping madly on the spot.
"You -- get out of here!"
A powerful repelling force surged again, attempting to expel Daniel and Jessica's conscious forms from the dream.
But this time, when the force hit Daniel, it felt like a gentle breeze.
Daniel and Jessica remained hand in hand, standing firm.
Freddy was stunned. "How can this be?"
He roared again, "Get out..."
Yet nothing changed. Daniel and Jessica stayed rooted.
"No, this is impossible! How can this be?"
His face twisted in madness and disbelief.
Daniel's voice turned cold. "Nothing is impossible. Have you heard of the Incantation of Dream Severance?"
Daniel quickly formed a hand seal with one hand and began chanting aloud.
Let the light of dawn scatter every false vision.
Let the guardians of sacred order stand beside me.
Let every nightmare be exposed, and every deception undone.
By sealed authority, let truth prevail over illusion.
With the Blade of Judgment, let this dream be shattered. Begone!
At the final word, Daniel's right hand formed a sword-finger and slashed downward.
An invisible shockwave radiated from him.
The entire dream world began to shake violently.
"What?!"
Freddy's terror grew as he realized his control over the dream was slipping fast; walls peeled, the ground cracked, the sky shattered. The very rules of the dream started to collapse.
"No! This is impossible! This is a dream! My dream!"
Freddy flailed desperately, trying to regain control, but it was useless.
The Incantation of Dream Severance specialized in breaking evil dreams and disrupting the dream realm's Laws.
At this moment, the dream was no longer Freddy's to command.
"Got you," Daniel said coldly, gripping with his left hand.
A giant golden hand materialized out of thin air, firmly grabbing the struggling Freddy.
"Let me go! Let go!" Freddy shrieked, slashing frantically at the golden light with his blades, but to no avail.
Holding Jessica's hand, Daniel took slow steps toward the captive Freddy.
Freddy snarled as Daniel approached, "You can't kill me! As long as someone on Elm Street remembers me, I can't be killed."
"Is that so?" Daniel sneered. "Sure, I can't kill you in a dream. But what if we bring this fight into reality?"
Freddy's face drained of color.
"No--!"
True fear gripped him.
Daniel closed his eyes, channeling all his magical power.
"Break the dream! Return to reality!"
Boom!
The dream world shattered completely.
...
The real world.
In a bedroom, Daniel and Jessica opened their eyes simultaneously and sat up in bed.
Suddenly, a figure appeared mid-air -- it was Freddy, pulled out of the dream.
In reality, he lost all the powers granted by the dream, reduced to a weakened evil spirit form.
Jessica looked at the figure, both scared and relieved.
Before landing, Freddy's form flickered and vanished.
But moments later, he suddenly reappeared mid-air, staggering backward.
His figure flickered repeatedly but always reappeared quickly.
"How can this be? Why can't I enter the dream world anymore?"
Daniel said coldly, "Did you think I wouldn't be ready?"
On every wall, window, door, ceiling, and even the floor, Daniel had affixed Seals. These formed a sealed barrier, cutting off every escape route.
"I told you, Freddy. Your good days are over."
Thud!
Freddy dropped to his knees, repeatedly kowtowing. "My Lord! Spare me! I'm willing to be your slave! I'll do anything you want! I can help you enter anyone's dreams, spy on secrets, create fear--"
Daniel felt something familiar in this scene. It reminded him of the Succubus from before.
Their abilities were similar. One ventured to the spiritual world; the other to dreams. But compared to Freddy, the Succubus was far more useful.
Freddy couldn't attack everyone.
He could only target people who knew of him or those who'd been to Elm Town or Elm Street.
His limits were too great.
And on top of that, Freddy was a true pervert -- he preyed on children and women.
Daniel didn't need someone like that. No, not an evil spirit like him.
"Die."
Daniel's voice was soft but filled with intense killing intent.
*****
https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.
https://discord.gg/HjHHhUXPn7.