Night Terrors

For months, Danny Jenkins woke up at 5:00 a.m. in a cold sweat. He had nightmare after nightmare and didn't understand why. Danny delved into the study of dreams to understand his nightmares. The little memory of his nightmares he could recall was of no help. 

Danny began intentionally staying awake. He drank coffee late into the evening hours. He even started dabbling with amphetamine use to keep from sleeping. That's how scared of his nightmares Danny had become. 

Over time, Danny's schoolwork began to suffer. His parents insisted that he see a therapist. Danny was able to bluff his way past the therapist and with ease. While nothing seemed to work, Danny was coming up with a way to understand what he saw. 

After reading the book Remember Your Dreams, Danny believed he could recall his nightmares with practice. So he did. He practiced teaching himself to remember small things around him. In weeks, Danny could remember the slightest stimuli in his orbit. He was ready to find out what was haunting him. 

"Alright, Shelly. You know what to do. In one hour, you have to call my cellphone. Don't stop calling until you wake me up," he told his best friend. 

Shelly sat on her bed. She told Danny she'd keep calling until he answered. After hearing the story of his nightmares, Shelly worried about the boy she'd grown up living next door to and wanted to help. Shelly hoped he would sleep. Seeing him down a handful of uppers with an energy drink was scary. 

"Of course, Danny. Just try to get some rest. I'll call you in an hour," she promised. 

Danny smiled. He had two close friends outside of the football team. Shelly was the one he trusted the most. 

"Thanks," he said. "Wish me luck." 

Danny hung the phone up and lay back against his pillow. He stared at the ceiling for minutes until his eyes got heavy. Danny was about to go to the one place that scared him most. He hoped he would be able to come back.

Danny opened his eyes. He stood in a stone corridor as a weirdly familiar smoke covered the ground. All along the corridor were old wooden doors with demonic images hanging above them. 

As Danny walked down the corridor, following the amber light at the end, the howling in the distance grew louder. He had heard the howling before, but now it was more pronounced. He cautiously continued, believing that the secret to what haunted him awaited. 

It felt like hours in that foul stench. Bits of ash fell around him, staining his Addidas. He wondered how long it would be before Shelly woke him. As he continued, Danny could hear the howls getting louder. The howls weren't howls.

Danny heard screams and shrieks at the end of the hall. Thousands of screaming souls were crying out. The tortured sounds grew louder as he neared. Danny's heart began to race. His skin cooled, a thin layer of sweat developing. 

He finally made it to the end of the ominous corridor. There, he stood at a twenty-foot double door. The ancient entrance was carved with a demonic figure. He nervously pushed the door open, knowing exactly where he was and the evil that awaited him on the other side.

Danny remembered everything. He knew the sounds. They were the tortured souls of the dammed. He was no longer afraid. Now, Danny was angry. 

As he pushed through the doors, his face changed. He stared into the eyes of the beast sitting on his throne. Standing there, indignantly, Danny began to lash out, full well knowing that the fallen angel in front of him could snap his fingers and put Danny into the firey pit. 

"I told you," demanded Danny. "I want nothing to do with this place." 

The demon pointed at Danny, his outstretched, monstrous hand matching the horror of his face. He made no sounds. He only stared and pointed, until he finally spoke. 

"But it is your birthright," bellowed the devil. 

Danny knew the tale. He was special. He could see into the memories of other beings. He saw how the demon had escaped hell eighteen years ago. It took on the appearance of his father and manipulated his mother. It was something that Danny could never tell her. 

"No!" screamed Danny.

'Ring, Ring, Ring,' rang Danny's phone. 

Danny opened his eyes and grabbed his cell phone. He saw Shelly's image on the screen and pressed the green icon. 

"Jesus," yelled Shelly. "I was about to call your parents. I've been calling for two hours!"

Wh..what, thought Danny. Two hours was impossible. He'd only been in the dream a short time. 

"You're sure?" asked Danny, looking confusingly at his watch. 

"Yes," snapped Shelly. "So, did it work? What the hell do your nightmares mean?"

Danny sat up in his bed, staring out his window and across to Shelly's. He knew what the nightmares meant as he brushed the ash from his clothes. 

Every night, after midnight, the Prince of Hell had been going home. Danny remembered who he was. Looking at his reflection, he could see his true form. 

"Shelly," I talk to you tomorrow. 

Danny hung up the phone, annoyed with his human appearance. In the reflection, Danny could see who he was in reality. Susan Jenkins had unknowingly given birth to the Asmodeus, the king of all demons.