Chapter 38: The first Gate

Chapter 38: The first Gate

Eileen's eyes widened in horror as she beheld the monstrosity hovering over the mansion ground. She looked squarely at Xander and asked in a panicky voice, "What the hell do you mean? You're supposed to be a Dreamwalker. How do you not know about this monster?"

"The Nightscape is an infinite plane which keeps expanding with each new nightmare. There are more Ethereals there than there are stars in the sky. And every time a person's mind conjures up a new twisted fear, it manifests itself in the form of a new Ethereal. There is no Dreamwalker alive who knows all the Ethereals dwelling in the dark heart of the veiled world."

"But you killed those monsters in Windbell Park. This shouldn't be a problem for you. We need to get to the mayor before it's too late."

Xander scoffed at Eileen's ignorance. "I don't even know what that thing is. Killing a few Implings is a piece of cake for any experienced Dreamwalker, but that Ethereal in front of the mansion is on a whole different level."

As the drifting winds blew the clouds away, moonlight flooded Galing Avenue, dispelling the foggy darkness around the mansion and revealing an even more terrifying sight.

There were strange lifelike statues scattered all over the mansion grounds. The first responders who had tried to run across the lawn and shoot the Ethereal had been turned to stone and the more fortunate ones had been killed outright.

There were bloodied corpses hanging from the orange trees and sprawled over the neatly trimmed hedges.

A few of the bodies had even landed on the white marble fountain on the right side of the graveled path. Its clear spring water had turned a dirty shade of red and there were bloodstains on its sculpted floral base.

The Ethereal's barbed tentacles were still squirming menacingly as if waiting for their next victim. There was no way anyone could get close to the mansion while the monstrous eye kept watch.

Just by looking at the petrified cops and the bodies littered across the lawn, one could tell that setting foot on the mansion ground was no different than stepping into a death trap.

Eileen however, still had high hopes on the Dreamwalkers.

"The mayor is trapped there. We have to get to him before its too late," she said without taking her eyes off the Ethereal.

"It's impossible to go anywhere near that mansion," Xander replied.

This prompted another angry outburst from Eileen. "Why the hell did I bring you here if you won't be able to help out? I should have taken you into custody for conspiring against the city!"

"I'm not your God damn errand boy!" Xander quipped sharply. "If you're feeling so brave you should send your agents to rescue the mayor."

"You insolent—

"This one didn't come out of a portal. Look over there," Leena interrupted Eileen and pointed at something behind the grotesque eyeball.

It was a gray stone arch with black smoke swirling inside it. The structure was rooted firmly into the ground and surrounded by four black marble pillars crowned with shiny black crystal balls floating above them.

"It doesn't look like that portal which opened in Windbell Park," Eileen remarked.

"That's because this isn't a portal. It's a gate...a Gate...a Nightmare Gate," Xander replied, his voice turning dark and cold. n-(OvelbIn

Detective Locksley had been listening to their conversation, but he didn't have the nerve to stand back up and gaze at that Ethereal again. Without making any attempt to get out of cover, he asked, "What the hell is a Nightmare Gate?"

"A Nightmare Gate is similar to a Nightmare Portal. They both connect our world to the Nightscape. But there are quite a few differences as well. Dreamwalkers like us can enter portals, but Gates do not allow any being from the real world to cross to the other side. However, Ethereals from the Nightscape can use the Gate to invade our world at will. Think of it as a one-way bridge," Xander explained.

"Don't tell me that these Nightmare Gates also appear spontaneously whenever someone has a nightmare," Eileen joined in.

Xander shook his head. "No, Nightmare Gates are quite a rare occurrence. The ancient Dreamwalker texts say that Nightmare Gates can only appear in the real world when several sleepers experience the same nightmare simultaneously."

"How's that even possible?" Eileen asked in confusion. She had never heard about people having the same dream or nightmare at the same time.

"There are quite a few ways for that to happen. Someone could be manipulating their nightmares or it could have been induced by a hallucinogen or a shared trauma," Leena explained. "But shared nightmares don't last that long...unless."

"Unless what?" Eileen asked.

"Unless someone is preventing them from waking up," Leena replied.

"So this gate will disappear if they wake up?" Eileen asked with a faint glimmer of hope in her eyes.

Xander however, was quick to bring the bad news. "A Nightmare Gate which has once been opened doesn't disappear on its own. Even if all the sleepers have awakened, it won't make any difference. And the longer the Gate lasts, the worst it will get."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Eileen turned to face Xander. Her eyebrows were knitted together and there were beads of sweat rolling down her forehead.

"The Nightmare Gates are said to empower the Ethereals near it. Unless we find a way to destroy it, the Gate will keep feeding that freakish eyeball and increasing its power. Plus, there's also a good chance that it will spawn other Ethereals as well."

"So how do we close this Gate?" Detective Locksley pitched in with the same question which was on Eileen's mind.

"Gate's cannot be closed once opened," Leena answered. As all eyes turned to her, she prepared a more detailed explanation. "We cannot close a Gate, but we can destroy it. That will prevent any other entities from crossing over to our world."

"But for that we need to get close to that Gate and break the four nightmare crystals on top of those pillars," Xander said, eyeing the black marble structures around the gate.

"We can shoot it from here," Eileen replied, pulling out her sidearm.

Xander immediately shook his head. "If you destroy the nightmare crystals without cleansing them first, they will wreak havoc on the surrounding area. The dark energy trapped within them can warp the fabric of space and distort reality. And if that happens, you can kiss goodbye to the mansion and all its residents."

"You're not being very helpful. We need a solution. You're a Dreamwalker. There has to be something you can do to fix this situation," Eileen spoke in a disgruntled tone. She was done being nice to Xander.

Detective Locksley sensed the hostility in Eileen's voice and realized things were about to get heated soon. He quickly intervened. "He may be a Dreamwalker, but he can't just go in there all guns blazing and hope things work out. We need to come up with a plan."

"Nothing's gonna work as long as that eye is looking in this direction. We'll get petrified before we can cross the lawn," Xander replied, glancing at the cops who had been turned to stone. "I'm pretty happy staying out of this. The mayor's life isn't worth it."

"How dare—

"This isn't just the Mayor's problem, Xander." Before Eileen could reprimand him with a flurry of insults, Leena interrupted her.

Xander turned to his friend with a curious gaze. "I really don't care if the city depends on him. Nothing's gonna convince me to set foot over there."

"You still don't get it, do you?" Leena questioned, staring into his eyes. "That Ethereal could kill the residents of the mansion whenever it wants. But it is choosing not to. It's guarding the mansion."

"Why would an Ethereal from the Nightscape guard a human residence?"

"Maybe it was commanded to do so. Nightmare Gates don't just appear randomly. You know that someone helped to open that Gate. This has to be the work of those cultists. They could have killed the mayor if they wanted to, but they've kept him alive. It means that they need something from him."

Leena's words completely flipped Xander's perspective on the situation. If this was indeed the work of the cultists, it meant that there was something inside that mansion that they needed. And if they got their hands on it, things were only going to get worse.

"Faros will not survive if those cultists get what they want. We have to rescue the mayor." Leena's words rang ominously in Xander's ears.

Though the odds were stacked against them, Xander knew he couldn't let those cultists win this time. Taking a good look at the Ethereal, he turned to his companions.

"Alright, here's the plan. We need a distraction to keep that Ethereal busy. Leena and I are going to flank the mansion and climb over the back walls. We're gonna need time to cleanse the crystals, so make sure you keep that thing away from us."

"I will call for reinforcements. Sit tight and wait for me to return," Eileen replied.

"My men can provide covering fire from here, but they aren't going to enter the mansion grounds," Detective Locksley added. "Make sure you know what you're doing."

Xander nodded in agreement. "Fine. Just keep your eyes on the mansion. I'm gonna stock up on some supplies." Turning to Eileen, he added, "I need one of your agents to drop me at Ordeli Avenue first."

"You can take my car," Detective Locksley said, tossing his keys to Eileen. "It's parked at the left side of the road, under the fig tree. I'll stay here with my team and try to keep that monster contained."

Eileen handed the car keys to her second in command and instructed him to take the Dreamwalker wherever he needed to go. She then took the second agent with her and got back into her white SUV.

"Take us back to the HQ. We need reinforcements," she instructed, fastening her seatbelt.