The Bad Man Cometh (Buffy/Nightmare on Elm Street)
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
"His name is Fred Krueger." Alice explained. "In life, he was a serial killer who preyed on the neighborhood children in Springwood. My home town. He was eventually caught, but he got off on a technicality. So the parents hunted him down and killed him. Burned him to death. But somehow, no one's quite sure how, that didn't stop him. He now enters the dreams of his intended victims and kills them."
"How do we stop him?" Buffy asked.
"We can't." Alice said despairingly. "I thought I'd stopped him twice, a friend of mine thought she'd done so, in fact if I had a dime for every person who'd tried and thought they'd succeeded I'd be rich. I thought I could escape him by leaving Springwood but obviously he found a way to follow me. I just wish I knew how."
"Well the fact that we're on the Hellmouth may have something to do with it." Giles said.
"The what?" Alice asked.
Giles sighed and proceeded to explain the Hellmouth, leaving out nothing. She might as well know.
"That does make sense." Alice said. "Before he only had a portal to dreams because Springwood is where he'd lived. But here-"
"This place is a portal anyway."
"Exactly."
"Okay great." Buffy said. "Now we know where he came from, and how he got here. Now will someone please tell me how we can stop him?"
"No one's ever been able to stop him permanently." Alice said. "The best anyone's been able to do is put him away temporarily."
"That may be because no one's really known what he was." Giles muttered. "Willow it's that time again."
"What are we looking up this time?" Willow sighed.
"Dreams and Demons." Giles replied. "Which do you want?"
"Uh, I guess dreams." Willow said. "I don't need the extra nightmares."
*****
Sometime later, Giles and Willow emerged from the stacks with triumphant expressions on their faces.
"Well I do believe we've solved the mystery." Giles said.
"Well don't keep us in suspense." Xander said. "Share."
Giles held an old book of mythology in his hand. He opened it to a certain page and showed them the photo. It was of an old carving depicting serpentine creatures wrapped around two tortured individuals.
"What are those?" Buffy asked.
"Dream Demons." Giles explained. "According to the myth, they live on the astral plane and they search eternally for a person evil enough to hold their essence and do their work."
"Which is apparently to spread destruction and death." Alice said.
"So pretty standard for Demons then." Xander said.
"Okay, so now that we know how he was created," Buffy said. "How do we kill him."
"Freddy isn't the first to be chosen." Willow said. "I found lot's of references this kind of things from almost every country's mythology I looked at. Since they don't exist on this plane the demons themselves can't be killed."
"Okay so what about Freddy himself?" Alice asked.
"We need to bring him out of the dream world." Giles said simply.
"What?" Xander and Buffy asked.
"It should be possible." Alice suggested. "Everything he does to you in your dream happens in real life." Remembering something about others' encounters with Freddy she added; "In fact I'm sure it will work. The first to defeat him, Nancy managed to bring his hat out of the dream. She tried to bring him out but he escaped."
"Escaped?" Buffy asked.
"In order to bring him out, you have be holding on to him. He managed to get away and convince her that she'd succeeded."
"So how'd she defeat him?"
"She realized it was a dream, and turned her back on him. It took away his power."
"Okay so how do we make sure we don't fail?"
"Well," Alice said. "As a Dream Master-"
"A what?" Willow asked.
"I'll explain later." Alice said. "Anyway, Buffy, I can enter your dream and help you capture him."
"Sounds like a plan." Xander said. "But then what?"
"Then this." Giles produced and scroll from his pocket. "This incantation should make sure Mr. Krueger never bothers anyone again." He smiled grimly. "And it should provide quite an appropriate punishment for his crimes as well."
"All right," Buffy said, taking a deep breath. "Giles, put me under."
"Right." Giles strode over to Buffy and began swinging the pendulum. He felt a sudden pang of regret, remembering that only minutes ago he had done the exact same thing to Martin. And look what had happened to him.
"She's asleep." Alice said, her eyes were closed as well, obviously the better to sense when Buffy started dreaming.
Giles soon saw Buffy's lids begin to twitch. "She's dreaming-" he turned to see Alice's lids twitching too. "Oh, well, yes, now we, um, wait."
*****
Buffy stood, listening for the slightest hint of movement in the darkness around her. She was in an old factory, just like the one she'd dreamed of before. Hearing nothing, she crept down the catwalk, every sense attuned to the slightest hint of danger.
Somewhere ahead of her she heard metal scraping on metal. Well that didn't take long. she thought. Maniacal laughter echoed through the factory.
"Come on Slayer," the familiar voice called, "Come and get me."
Buffy came to a doorway, the room beyond shrouded in blackness. Suddenly, somebody landed heavily on the catwalk behind her. She whirled around, just in time to block Freddy's opening salvo. A swift barrage of kicks and punches pushed him back to the edge of the catwalk, and then finally, over it. He disappeared into the maze of pipes below her. Buffy didn't hesitate, she leaped over the railing after him.
She landed hard, rolled and came up ready to fight. But she had no idea where her quarry was. Suddenly, a hand clapped down on her shoulder from behind. She spun on her heel, raising her hand to strike.
"Woah!" Alice said. "It's just me Buffy!"
"Oh," Buffy replied sheepishly. "Sorry, my b."
"What?"
"My B. My Bad?"
"Oh right. Must be getting old."
Immediately, Buffy noticed that Alice's face had grown much older indeed.
"Alice!" she cried in alarm.
"What?" Alice croaked, then realized what was happening. "Shame Freddy!" she called. Concentrating, she reversed what Freddy had done. "You're usually much more original than that!"
"Aw c'mon!" Freddy said, stepping from the darkness. "I couldn't let that pass!"
Without even planning, it, Buffy and Alice hit Freddy at the same time, knocking him into the wall. Neither of them let up for a second, pummeling him, until finally, Alice managed to pin Freddy's gloved arm to the wall, while Buffy grabbed him around the neck.
"Now Giles!" Alice shouted. "Wake us up!"
*****
Xander and Willow had thought they had prepared themselves for what was coming. But when Giles spoke the command that woke Buffy and Alice, who looked to be doing the best mime act either of them had ever seen. They realized they were wrong.
For there he was. The man himself. Sweater and all. He snarled at them, and involuntarily, they jumped back. Giles meanwhile, snapped up the scroll from the table and prepared to read.
But Freddy had other plans. He swung up his legs, flipping out of Buffy's and Alice's grasp. His feet struck the wall above their heads and he pushed off. Flipping in mid-air, he faced Giles, who, though shaken by Freddy's escape, managed to keep reading in a steady voice.
Freddy knew, from being inside Buffy's mind just what Giles was trying to do. But he wouldn't get the chance. No longer in the dream realm, he was limited in his abilities. He was once again mortal. But even mortal he was more than a match for a old book worm like this guy. Grinning, Freddy swung at Giles.
"No!" Xander shouted and threw himself at Freddy. He slammed into the man's side, throwing him off balance.
Undaunted, Giles continued to read, he was almost done. Just one more passage.
Freddy was not used to pain. Though he'd often encountered victims who'd fought back, he'd never felt pain in the dreams. But the impact of Xander's fist on his face hurt. But it also made him mad.
Xander could not believe he'd just tackled a serial killer, much less hit him. But the reality of the situation was made plain when Freddy threw him off and tackled him instead.
"Say goodnight Gracie!" Freddy laughed and slashed at Xander's face.
"Xander!" Willow cried, running, and launching herself at Freddy.
Giles finished the incantation. With a pained, anguished howl, Freddy vanished. Willow's momentum carried her forward, onto Xander.
Willow became aware of two things at once. One; that Xander was safe. Two; the fact that she was lying on top of Xander. She lay absolutely still for a moment, the close proximity of the boy stunning her. Then she scrambled off him.
"Is that it?" Buffy asked softly. "What happened to him Giles?"
"Well," Giles said, "I sent him back to the dream realm."
"You did what?" Alice asked incredulously.
"Let me finish." Giles said quickly. "He's not wholly in the dream realm you see, he's more in a limbo. He can see, but not affect, the dreams of those he would attack. And the souls he collected are now free. He's trapped, eternally, in what for him should be a fairly appropriate hell."
Xander got to his feet with Buffy's help, and they all looked at the spot where Martin and Amy had stood.
"So," Alice said, "It's finally over."
The End?
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
"His name is Fred Krueger." Alice explained. "In life, he was a serial killer who preyed on the neighborhood children in Springwood. My home town. He was eventually caught, but he got off on a technicality. So the parents hunted him down and killed him. Burned him to death. But somehow, no one's quite sure how, that didn't stop him. He now enters the dreams of his intended victims and kills them."
"How do we stop him?" Buffy asked.
"We can't." Alice said despairingly. "I thought I'd stopped him twice, a friend of mine thought she'd done so, in fact if I had a dime for every person who'd tried and thought they'd succeeded I'd be rich. I thought I could escape him by leaving Springwood but obviously he found a way to follow me. I just wish I knew how."
"Well the fact that we're on the Hellmouth may have something to do with it." Giles said.
"The what?" Alice asked.
Giles sighed and proceeded to explain the Hellmouth, leaving out nothing. She might as well know.
"That does make sense." Alice said. "Before he only had a portal to dreams because Springwood is where he'd lived. But here-"
"This place is a portal anyway."
"Exactly."
"Okay great." Buffy said. "Now we know where he came from, and how he got here. Now will someone please tell me how we can stop him?"
"No one's ever been able to stop him permanently." Alice said. "The best anyone's been able to do is put him away temporarily."
"That may be because no one's really known what he was." Giles muttered. "Willow it's that time again."
"What are we looking up this time?" Willow sighed.
"Dreams and Demons." Giles replied. "Which do you want?"
"Uh, I guess dreams." Willow said. "I don't need the extra nightmares."
*****
Sometime later, Giles and Willow emerged from the stacks with triumphant expressions on their faces.
"Well I do believe we've solved the mystery." Giles said.
"Well don't keep us in suspense." Xander said. "Share."
Giles held an old book of mythology in his hand. He opened it to a certain page and showed them the photo. It was of an old carving depicting serpentine creatures wrapped around two tortured individuals.
"What are those?" Buffy asked.
"Dream Demons." Giles explained. "According to the myth, they live on the astral plane and they search eternally for a person evil enough to hold their essence and do their work."
"Which is apparently to spread destruction and death." Alice said.
"So pretty standard for Demons then." Xander said.
"Okay, so now that we know how he was created," Buffy said. "How do we kill him."
"Freddy isn't the first to be chosen." Willow said. "I found lot's of references this kind of things from almost every country's mythology I looked at. Since they don't exist on this plane the demons themselves can't be killed."
"Okay so what about Freddy himself?" Alice asked.
"We need to bring him out of the dream world." Giles said simply.
"What?" Xander and Buffy asked.
"It should be possible." Alice suggested. "Everything he does to you in your dream happens in real life." Remembering something about others' encounters with Freddy she added; "In fact I'm sure it will work. The first to defeat him, Nancy managed to bring his hat out of the dream. She tried to bring him out but he escaped."
"Escaped?" Buffy asked.
"In order to bring him out, you have be holding on to him. He managed to get away and convince her that she'd succeeded."
"So how'd she defeat him?"
"She realized it was a dream, and turned her back on him. It took away his power."
"Okay so how do we make sure we don't fail?"
"Well," Alice said. "As a Dream Master-"
"A what?" Willow asked.
"I'll explain later." Alice said. "Anyway, Buffy, I can enter your dream and help you capture him."
"Sounds like a plan." Xander said. "But then what?"
"Then this." Giles produced and scroll from his pocket. "This incantation should make sure Mr. Krueger never bothers anyone again." He smiled grimly. "And it should provide quite an appropriate punishment for his crimes as well."
"All right," Buffy said, taking a deep breath. "Giles, put me under."
"Right." Giles strode over to Buffy and began swinging the pendulum. He felt a sudden pang of regret, remembering that only minutes ago he had done the exact same thing to Martin. And look what had happened to him.
"She's asleep." Alice said, her eyes were closed as well, obviously the better to sense when Buffy started dreaming.
Giles soon saw Buffy's lids begin to twitch. "She's dreaming-" he turned to see Alice's lids twitching too. "Oh, well, yes, now we, um, wait."
*****
Buffy stood, listening for the slightest hint of movement in the darkness around her. She was in an old factory, just like the one she'd dreamed of before. Hearing nothing, she crept down the catwalk, every sense attuned to the slightest hint of danger.
Somewhere ahead of her she heard metal scraping on metal. Well that didn't take long. she thought. Maniacal laughter echoed through the factory.
"Come on Slayer," the familiar voice called, "Come and get me."
Buffy came to a doorway, the room beyond shrouded in blackness. Suddenly, somebody landed heavily on the catwalk behind her. She whirled around, just in time to block Freddy's opening salvo. A swift barrage of kicks and punches pushed him back to the edge of the catwalk, and then finally, over it. He disappeared into the maze of pipes below her. Buffy didn't hesitate, she leaped over the railing after him.
She landed hard, rolled and came up ready to fight. But she had no idea where her quarry was. Suddenly, a hand clapped down on her shoulder from behind. She spun on her heel, raising her hand to strike.
"Woah!" Alice said. "It's just me Buffy!"
"Oh," Buffy replied sheepishly. "Sorry, my b."
"What?"
"My B. My Bad?"
"Oh right. Must be getting old."
Immediately, Buffy noticed that Alice's face had grown much older indeed.
"Alice!" she cried in alarm.
"What?" Alice croaked, then realized what was happening. "Shame Freddy!" she called. Concentrating, she reversed what Freddy had done. "You're usually much more original than that!"
"Aw c'mon!" Freddy said, stepping from the darkness. "I couldn't let that pass!"
Without even planning, it, Buffy and Alice hit Freddy at the same time, knocking him into the wall. Neither of them let up for a second, pummeling him, until finally, Alice managed to pin Freddy's gloved arm to the wall, while Buffy grabbed him around the neck.
"Now Giles!" Alice shouted. "Wake us up!"
*****
Xander and Willow had thought they had prepared themselves for what was coming. But when Giles spoke the command that woke Buffy and Alice, who looked to be doing the best mime act either of them had ever seen. They realized they were wrong.
For there he was. The man himself. Sweater and all. He snarled at them, and involuntarily, they jumped back. Giles meanwhile, snapped up the scroll from the table and prepared to read.
But Freddy had other plans. He swung up his legs, flipping out of Buffy's and Alice's grasp. His feet struck the wall above their heads and he pushed off. Flipping in mid-air, he faced Giles, who, though shaken by Freddy's escape, managed to keep reading in a steady voice.
Freddy knew, from being inside Buffy's mind just what Giles was trying to do. But he wouldn't get the chance. No longer in the dream realm, he was limited in his abilities. He was once again mortal. But even mortal he was more than a match for a old book worm like this guy. Grinning, Freddy swung at Giles.
"No!" Xander shouted and threw himself at Freddy. He slammed into the man's side, throwing him off balance.
Undaunted, Giles continued to read, he was almost done. Just one more passage.
Freddy was not used to pain. Though he'd often encountered victims who'd fought back, he'd never felt pain in the dreams. But the impact of Xander's fist on his face hurt. But it also made him mad.
Xander could not believe he'd just tackled a serial killer, much less hit him. But the reality of the situation was made plain when Freddy threw him off and tackled him instead.
"Say goodnight Gracie!" Freddy laughed and slashed at Xander's face.
"Xander!" Willow cried, running, and launching herself at Freddy.
Giles finished the incantation. With a pained, anguished howl, Freddy vanished. Willow's momentum carried her forward, onto Xander.
Willow became aware of two things at once. One; that Xander was safe. Two; the fact that she was lying on top of Xander. She lay absolutely still for a moment, the close proximity of the boy stunning her. Then she scrambled off him.
"Is that it?" Buffy asked softly. "What happened to him Giles?"
"Well," Giles said, "I sent him back to the dream realm."
"You did what?" Alice asked incredulously.
"Let me finish." Giles said quickly. "He's not wholly in the dream realm you see, he's more in a limbo. He can see, but not affect, the dreams of those he would attack. And the souls he collected are now free. He's trapped, eternally, in what for him should be a fairly appropriate hell."
Xander got to his feet with Buffy's help, and they all looked at the spot where Martin and Amy had stood.
"So," Alice said, "It's finally over."
The End?