Title: Dark Dreams ch.4 Author: Lily`s Eyes Rating: PG And some night I`m going to ask him How the old moon turns to new. I know the answer`s in his book Of all that`s good and true. I`m sure the answer`s in his book Of all that`s good and true. -------------------------------------------- For a few frightening moments Viggo felt as if he was falling into a black hole that not only devoured all light,but his entire reality.He lay completely frozen,trying to lose that dizzying feeling of disorientation that muffled all his senses.After a seemingly endless while,he gradually started to become aware of the sound of his own,still rapid breathing and his skin breaking into goosebumps under a cooling sheen of sweat.It was then that he began to shake Although he dug his fingers into the mattress with all his might,he just couldn`t seem to keep himself from shuddering.It felt as if it would never again cease,as if his body might come apart from the violence of the tremors.Only after a while did he notice that tears were streaming down his face,tears he could neither understand nor stop.He could hear himself sobbing now. “Oh God!” Just whispering those two words took an incredible effort,but somehow they brought him a bit more back to reality,so he said them again.His voice was startlingly loud and strange to his ears,as if it wasn´t really his own.Reaching out a still shaking hand,he managed to switch on the light on the bedside table.The sudden brightness seemed to have a calming effect on him,as he could feel the shaking subside and his brain begin to clear gradually.Slowly he ran a hand over his face.What on earth was happening with him?He could probably stop now deluding himself that there certainly was some harmless,perfectly normal explanation for everything.*Going mad is perfectly normal,people do it all the time.* But people didn`t go mad that quickly,or did they?Was it simply like your brain throwing a switch and you went from being sane to being hopelessly mad in seconds?Surely it wasn`t that easy,surely he would have experienced something like that before,if indeed he *was* mad.*Oh,but you have*,a little voice in the back of his mind taunted,*just yesterday,in the garden.This was only the more pleasant version of audio-visual hallucination.*But could you actually touch hallucinations?*Well,if you`re mad enough, you probably can*,he thought.Although he hadn`t really seen or heard anything,now had he?His eyes had been closed the whole time,so it actually had been rather a dream than a hallucination. *But this wasn`t a dream,you can`t fall in love with a dream,…but maybe you can fall in love with a ghost.Ghost!*That thought caused Viggo to jump up from his bed.His heart racing,he repeatedly checked every corner of the room for… something,this old Scottish prayer playing in an endless loop inside his head. From ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties And things that go bump in the night Good Lord,deliver us! Over and over again.Yes,ghosts were supposed to be frightening weren`t they?They were supposed to be dark,grotesque shadows or eerily glowing,wailing wraiths,not enticingly beautiful creatures,full of warmth and life.You were supposed to recognize them as what they were,the second you saw them.Viggo switched on every light in the room and then stood with his back pressed against a wall,this way he could see every nook of the room and it also ruled out the possibility of someone suddenly appearing behind him.*Go on,look under the bed*.For a second Viggo seriously considered looking under the bed.*You realize you are making a fool of yourself,don`t you?Ghosts don`t exist.* Yes,maybe he *was* making a fool of himself,but at the moment he was too confused and frightened to care.He stood completely motionless until the cold of the wall that had begun to seep into his body became increasingly unpleasant,he couldn`t stand there like that the whole night.Feeling still extremely jumpy,he climbed back into his suddenly so much less inviting looking bed,and spent the rest of the night trying hard not to think of anything ghostly and jumping a mile at even the slightest creaking of the floorboards or the softest gust of wind outside.The room,no the whole house seemed to have taken on a strange watching,waiting feeling,never before in his life had Viggo so fervently wished for a night to end. When dawn finally did break,it was met by an equally tired and relieved Viggo.He waited until the first bright rays of the morning sun fell into his room before he got up,still looking over his shoulder every now and then.He took an extremely unpleasant shower,half expecting something to happen that would send him rushing out of the house in terror,dripping wet and naked.A short giggle escaped him at that thought.*That`s right Vig,you go on practicing your mad cackle,you`ll soon have plenty occasions to use it*. After he`d showered and dressed,he went downstairs into the kitchen but found himself lacking any appetite for breakfast.With a deep sigh he slumped onto a chair,his body felt completely drained of energy while his mind kept racing.What was he going to do?He had always considered himself a somewhat open-minded individual,or rather,he hoped he was.But not outright denying the possibility of the existence of ghost and actually encountering them were two quite different things.Viggo had more or less accepted that there were only two plausible explanations for what he was experiencing,he either had unwittingly purchased a genuinely haunted house,or he had lost his mind.*Maybe I have lost my mind,but I`ve lost my heart also.* Yes,somehow that was what it all came down to in the end.No matter how frightened he was now,he *had* lost his heart and he knew he would never find it again,because it was *His* now,Orlando`s.And Viggo didn`t know where Orlando was,he didn`t even know *what* he was,but he found himself resenting the idea the young man could be only a figment of his imagination more and more.He *refused* to believe it because if Orlando was a ghost,then at least he existed in some way,then maybe Viggo could find him again somehow,then he would not have to live the rest of his life incomplete and hurting for something he could never have.Viggo could feel his eyes tear up at that thought and swallowed hard.He had to find Orlando again,he just had to.But how?What could he do?Suddenly he remembered the inscription on the window. He got up and stared at the window for a long time,reading those words over and over again as if they`d suddenly divulge their entire meaning to him,if he only read them often enough. Orlando Listen? Did that mean that Orlando was supposed to listen,or that Orlando wanted him to listen?And listen to what?If Orlando had wanted to tell him something important,wouldn`t he have done so last night?Viggo gritted his teeth with frustration.If he only knew a little more about ghosts than what he`d heard in children`s stories,maybe then he`d be able to understand this message.Angry at his own ignorance concerning the supernatural,he sat down again,resting his head in his hands.*Try to remember what you do know about ghosts*.At once fragments of every ghost story he`d ever heard shot through his mind,howling Banshees,headless specters rattling rusty chains,fierce black dogs with fiery eyes,but nothing that transcended the realm of old wives tales,but then he remembered something,an Ouija board,during his days in college there had never been a Halloween party without one.There always came the moment when one of them would suggest to hold a Seánce,of course it had all been a joke then as they all were pushing the planchette around on the board to spell out answers that grew sillier and sillier as the participants grew more and more drunk. None of them had ever really considered the possibility that it actually might work.Unfortunately that also meant that he hadn`t really any idea how to use an Ouija board,but that could be remedied and it would be at least worth a try.Of course before he could try,he`d have to find one of those boards.Viggo doubted there were shops specializing in these kind of things in the village.But that didn`t really matter,he`d drive back to London if he had to,to buy an Ouija board. To Viggo`s surprise,he didn`t have to drive that far.He found an Ouija board in a toy shop in a town only about fifteen miles from the village.Strange that toy shops sold these things,Viggo thought,especially since he seemed to recall reading something about some high strung teenagers going into hysterics because they were convinced they`d conjured up some kind of demon with their Ouija board.~Contact the Spirit World~, the board`s box read,maybe ~Over one million slumber parties ruined~,would be more fitting,Viggo thought wryly.But then he didn`t really know what the Ouija board had in store for him,now did he.What would he do if something happened?What would he do if nothing happened? After he´d returned to the cottage,Viggo just sat in his car in front of the house for quite some time,not really wanting to go back inside.Strange how the last 24 hours had changed his perception of the house,although it was just as beautiful as before,there now seemed to be an indefinable air of wrongness about it.Almost as if it wanted to hide something from him.Like a perfect red,ripe apple might hide the bitterness of decay inside it.Starting to feel restless,Viggo got out of his car and wandered aimlessly through the garden,carefully avoiding the vicinity of the overgrown appletree.Time seemed to equally fly and crawl.On one hand he wanted to try out the Ouija board,on the other hand he was frightened what he might find,he paused to crack his knuckles,there was something oddly calming about that.*Instead of wasting my time in the garden,I maybe should pack my suitcase before it gets dark*.He didn`t want to be completely unprepared just in case something happened that was more than he could take,which in his current edgy state would probably be not much more,and he wanted to leave as quickly as possible. When he had finished packing the sun was just beginning to set.After having laid out the Ouija board on the living room table,Viggo read the somewhat vague instructions on how to use it.There was no one definitive way to contact spirits he learned,but it was suggested the participants light a candle,form a circle,place a finger on the planchette and try to enter a state of ”relaxed concentration,”whatever that was supposed to be.The manufacturers could also not be held responsible for failure to contact the spirit world.He cast a quick glance out of the window before he lit the candle,the last rays of red evening sun had just vanished on the horizon.Viggo found that this didn`t really help him achieve any state of relaxation,but he would try anyway.Taking a couple of deep breaths,he placed his fingertips on the planchette and tried to focus on the Ouija board. Now,how was he going to do this?What was he supposed to say?Would “Hi,this is Viggo,can I speak with Orlando please?”be sufficient,or was maybe some kind of incantation needed?Feeling a bit awkward he began,”I would like to contact the spirit that inhabits this house,”his voice sounded unpleasantly loud through the silence of the room. “I would like to speak with Orlando,please if you can hear me,answer me or at least let your presence be known in some other way.”Nothing happened. “Orlando,if you are here,please give me some sign that you can hear me,”god,he felt stupid,begging an empty room to answer him,stupid and more than a little frightened of actually receiving an answer. “Orlando,this is Viggo,please if you can hear me,answer me,”several long moments passed but the planchette showed no reaction,it might just as well have been glued to the board. Viggo sighed,this was hopeless.He was just about to take his fingertips off the planchette,when he thought he felt a minuscule movement.Holding his breath he stared at the board.Ever so slowly the planchette began to slide across the letters,with a mixture of fear and curiosity Viggo read the word it spelled out. VIGGO He almost jumped out of his chair.”Yes,this is Viggo,Orlando is that you?”He didn`t know what he`d do if the answer was no. WHERE ARE YOU What was that supposed to mean?”I`m in the house,in the living room,”Viggo answered,his heart racing. I CANT SEE YOU Why couldn`t Orlando see him,if indeed this was Orlando? “I`m right here,at the table.” I CANT SEE YOU Viggo felt despair well up inside him,how could that be?Orlando had been able to see him before,hadn`t he?Before he could ask another question,the planchette began to move again. DID YOU HEAR THAT Hear what?Viggo strained his ears,but couldn`t hear anything,utter silence reigned in the room.”No,I didn´t hear anything,”he answered,his voice decidedly shaky. WHO IS THAT THERE WITH YOU Viggo found himself involuntarily shrinking from the darkness that surrounded him on all sides and casting apprehensive glances at the dancing shadows on the walls.There was nobody with him…hopefully. ”There`s nobody here with me,Orlando,”Viggo prayed that was the truth,suddenly he was beginning to feel very cold. WHO IS THAT Beginning to feel slightly panicky,Viggo once more scanned the room for whoever was supposed to be there with him,but again found himself alone. “There`s nobody here but me,I…,”suddenly the planchette moved so violently,he almost lost hold of it. NO Again and again. NONONONONO To Viggo`s utter dismay,the candle seemed to grow dimmer with each letter the planchette spelled out.He tore his hands away,hoping to stop it from flitting over the same word over and over in a maniacal dance.To no avail.The candle flickered and went out.He now sat surrounded by complete darkness.The moment the candle went out They were back again.Orlando had been right,he wasn`t alone.They seemed to have emerged from the walls as if they were part of the house,silent watchers to everything that happened inside it.Viggo felt them move around him in a frightening,swaying motion,drawing nearer and then back again.They were scrutinizing him.Even his experience in the garden was nothing compared to this,Viggo wondered briefly if this was what it felt like to die of fright and he could feel cold sweat trickling down his back.He considered bolting but that meant having to pass them,and that was something he simply could not bring himself to do. Suddenly a powerful blast of icy wind,strong enough to throw him off his chair,swept over him,rushing towards the door.Viggo`s head hit the floor hard,leaving him half dazed.Through the fog inside his head he heard a strange crashing noise emanating from the room above,as if a very strong man was throwing himself against a door with all his might.Viggo covered his ears in a vain attempt to shut out the hideous noise,this was getting too much for him to take,desperate for it all to stop,he began to silently say every prayer he knew.He was beginning to fear the terrifying clamour would last all night,when the noise abruptly stopped, followed by complete silence.*It `s not over yet,there still here*He was right,suddenly the silence was shattered by the sound of something heavy falling to the floor in the room above.Completely still and hardly breathing,Viggo lay there,afraid that any movement from him might trigger another violent reaction of some sort. Suddenly he saw a movement out of the corner of his eye,daring to shift his head a little,he saw a small,blue flame dancing over the floorboards quite close to him.Strangely enough,Viggo didn´t feel threatened by it.The light seemed to always hover over a certain spot and flickered slightly,somehow Viggo hoped it would stay there so at least he would not be in total darkness again.But after a few more seconds the light disappeared as suddenly as if it had been switched off,and with it disappeared everything else too.Viggo knew that at least for that night there would be no more disturbances,that somehow the extinguishing of the little flame had been the signal for everything te revert to normal,that They were gone now.Although it was still dark around him and he was still badly shaken,Viggo was certain that this darkness harbored no dangers for him anymore tonight.Standing up cautiously,he groped for the matchbox on the table and re lit the candle. His invisible intruders had left no traces of their presence and,although the wind had been strong enough to throw him off his chair,the planchette was still resting on the board and nothing else seemed to have been moved.Still feeling somewhat dazed,Viggo switched on the light over the table.Yes,even under the brightness of the lamp,everything seemed to be exactly as it had been before.Viggo dropped onto the chair again,and ran a hand through his hair as if with this gesture he could also calm the confusion reigning inside his head.The utter sense of horror he`d felt only minutes before was slowly giving way to a dull feeling of exaustion.like he had woken up from a restless sleep,troubled by nightmares,feeling bone weary instead of well rested. What was he to make of what had happened?Had that first spirit really been Orlando?Why had those horrible dark beings appeared again,and more importantly what were they and what did they want?Had they been responsible for those terrifying crashing noises?Viggo knew that he probably should check upstairs if everything was okay,but he was pretty certain that he`d find no trace of who or what had produced that noise,he shook his head and sighed.His eyes fell on the floorboards where the little flame had appeared.The flame for some reason had not scared him,maybe simply because it had been a light in complete darkness.It had looked a bit how Viggo imagined Will o`the Wisps to look like.Weren`t Will o`the Wisps supposed to be lost souls?If only he could remember.An unpleasant thought crossed his mind.*What if there`s a body buried there?* Holding his breath as if that thought alone could cause some horrible ghoul to suddenly rise out of the ground,reaching out for him with ghostly fingers,he got up to look closer at the floorboard over which the flame had hovered.It didn`t have any apparent differences to the other boards.No damages or signs that might point to it having been replaced.Viggo knelt down next to it and lightly knocked on it with his knuckles,if there indeed was something hidden directly underneath it,he should be able to detect it that way.If there was something buried deeply in the ground however,there was no way he`d find it without tearing up the entire floor.Suddenly there was what he`d been half fearing,half hoping for,a distinctly hollow sound.Viggo knocked again to make absolutely sure his ears had not deceived him,but they hadn`t,there definately was a hollow space under the board,though to his relief it was nowhere near big enough to contain a body.*There is something hidden there,something that has to do with Orlando*. Something that had to do with Orlando,and Viggo was determined to find out what it was.So,should he just see if he could find a crowbar somewhere and tear up the floorboards?Could that be done without completely ruining the floor?In the end that was the only way to reach whatever was beneath it and maybe if he was careful….But he was fooling himself,he knew that he would selfishly tear up the floor in every room if he thought that it would help him find Orlando.He stared at the board in frustration,as if he could somehow see through it if he only stared hard enough.There wasn´t really anything he could do now apart from waiting for the sunrise.Then he could still drive into town and buy a crowbar and maybe get some advice on how he could remove the floorboard without causing too much damage. Viggo had barely finished that train of thought,when he found himself in the kitchen,opening every drawer and cupboard,looking for something that could be used to force up the board.The floors were usually the first thing that got replaced during renovations of old houses,so this wouldn`t really be a big deal and it wasn´t like this was Shakespeare`s birthplace or something like that anyway,he tried to reason away his qualms about maybe ruining the entire room.He briefly considered a huge knife he´d found in one of the drawers but quickly put it back again,the blade was nowhere near stout enough and would probably break immediately.It seemed as if he would have to wait until tomorrow after all.Gritting his teeth in annoyance,he opened the door of the tiny broom closet,next to the kitchen door.It contained an array of cleaners,a mop and two buckets,but nothing that could have been useful to him at the moment. Viggo was about to slam the door shut again to continue searching,when his gaze fell onto something lying on the floor in a corner of the closet.A huge,old screwdriver that had apparently been misplaced and then forgotten about.He picked it up to get a closer look,it was pretty heavy and almost the size of a small crowbar.*It just might do the trick*,Viggo thought.*Or it might not,or you`ll ruin the floor,or you`ll injure yourself.* Ignoring the warning voice in his head,Viggo determinedly went back into the living room and knelt down next to the hollow sounding spot on the floor.He knew there couldn´t be a body hidden underneath it,but he didin`t know what there *could*be.What if there was nothing at all?*There has to be something!* He jabbed the screwdriver under the board,careful to use just enough force not to cause it to splinter.It was even harder than he`d thought.He slowly moved the screwdriver from side to side and could feel the board give ever so little.Viggo`s wrist was beginning to hurt from the tension,when suddenly with an unpleasant creak the floorboard popped out,causing a nasty,dry dust cloud to explode into his face.He dropped the screwdriver,coughing and wiping his eyes. When the dust had settled and he`d stopped coughing,he warily peeked into the dark recess.He couldn`t believe his eyes,there under a thick layer of dust and cobwebs,lay something Viggo,although it was impossible,knew he`d seen before.A small book,bound in wine-coloured leather,the book he`d seen Orlando writing in in his first dream.With shaking hands he picked it up,almost frightened to touch it.The leather was dry and brittle under his fingers and Viggo felt a strange feeling creep over him.Could this really be Orlando`s book?It had to be at least a couple of decades old,judging by the quality of the leather.Slowly and as careful as he could,he opened it.His breath caught in his throat at what he saw,there was what seemed to be a dedication written on the first page. To my beloved Orli And it was in his own handwriting. T B C