These Dreaming Houses All Snuff Out
"What does that mean?" Nina asks. You want to pull her away, you want to get out of here and just run, but you can't. "How exactly are you going to put the world to sleep? That doesn't even make any sense."
"The world's already ending, Nina," Doctor None says. "You know it. Everyone knows it. With the stars gone, it won't be long until our sun is gone, too, and then we're next. We can wait for it to happen, wait to be taken into the void, but that's not us. Human beings were never good at waiting. The longer it takes, the more people are going to be hurt. You've noticed it, haven't you? People acting out in violence, people trying to hurt others? Because they know the end is coming and they don't know how to deal with it. This world will go up in flames before it disappears. And we don't want to see that happen. We would rather everyone be put to sleep, like a beloved pet."
"You're sick," Nina says.
"Perhaps," Doctor None says. "I did a lot of sick things when I worked for...well, let's call it the Doctor, shall we? When I worked for it, I did a lot of bad things, but I was also privy to a lot of information. I knew about other beings, beings that could help or hurt us. And when I realized that the Doctor wouldn't be helping us, that it was just going to sit back and wait like all the rest, I decided to do something about it instead."
A cellphone rings, the sound like a sonic boom. "Ah, sorry about that," Doctor None says as he lifts his phone out from his pocket. "One moment, please." He listens intently to the person on the other end before saying, "Thank you. Sleep well," and hangs up.
"It appears our timetable has advanced," Doctor None says to the others around him. They scurry back to the building behind them, including Nina's mother, who waves hurriedly at her daughter to come with them.
"I will explain the rest inside," Doctor None says. "You can either shoot me here or let me go. You can leave or listen to the rest of what I have to say. Your choice." Then he retreats along with the rest of his followers.
"Nina," you say.
"I'm going," she says. "I want to get my mother out of there."
"This isn't going to end well," you say.
"She's my mother," Nina says.
"I know," you say. "I'll go with you."
Nina smiles at you and says, "Thanks."
Together, you walk towards the building. The people in the brown robes and hoods have lit lamps outside so you can finally tell what it is: an old abandoned hospital in an old part of the city, most of the buildings covered in graffiti. It's a part of the city that borders on some old residential areas – you can see houses made from brick and stucco faintly and you wonder if anyone will answer the door if you run over there.
Still, you follow Nina inside the old hospital and find that the people have made the inside into what looks like a large bedroom. They have cots and blankets set up everywhere. Most of them have removed their brown robes and hoods and they all look surprisingly normal. No murderous grins or sinister facial scars. They are all normal people who appear to be getting ready for a sleepover.
"Glad you decided to join us," Doctor None says when he sees Nina.
"I'm not joining you," Nina says. "I just want to get my mother and get out of here."
"Honey," her mother says. "I've made my decision. I wanted you to be with me when it happens."
"When what happens?" Nina says. "I still don't understand what the hell you are talking about – Doctors and nothing? This is all crazy talk."
"Perhaps," Doctor None says. "I haven't gotten to the relevant part yet. The Doctor, as I called it, wasn't the only higher being that I knew. I had contact with another being, whom I called Cronus. This being lived only in dreams." As he was saying this, he moves out among the people and hands them each a yellow pill. "It told me what was going to happen and how nothing could stop it. But at least it wanted to help. I told it what I wanted and it agreed. It agreed to put the world to sleep."
"I still don't understand," Nina says.
"Cronus lives in dreams," Doctor None says. "It can be in as many dreams as it wants. It can be in every person who is dreaming. And inside them, it can do anything it wants. It can make them do anything it wants." Doctor None looks at his watch. "It's already started now. Everyone who was dreaming has stopped breathing. They will die a nice and pleasant death in their sleep. And once the other side of the world goes to sleep, they will do the same."
"That's..." Nina says. "That's impossible."
"Is it?" Doctor None says. "Look at this." He goes forward and shows Nina the yellow pills he has been passing out. "It's just a regular dose of Ambien. It's not harmful. It's only going to put us to sleep. And when we go to sleep, we will have a wonderful dream and will never wake up." Doctor None smiles and gulps down the pill. "I guarantee you, it's much better than the alternative."
Nina turns around and yells, "Mom!" but it's too late: her mother has already swallowed her pill. "Spit it out, Mom, please," Nina pleads.
"Don't be like that, Nina," her mother says. "If you take one, too, we can be together in dreams."
"Mom, please," Nina says, tears in her eyes, but it's no use. Her mother is laying down on a mattress and covers herself in a blanket.
"You'll see," her mother says. "The dreaming is much better than the nothing."
Everyone is laying down and closing their eyes. Does Ambien work this fast? Could Doctor None have given them something else? Some poison?
The images of Jonestown race through your mind, of people poisoning themselves with knockoff Kool-Aid, of everyone just laying down to die.
You go from person to person. They are sleeping now or trying to sleep. You check their pulses, their breathing. They are not dead. They are all breathing fine, breathing normally. One of them is even snoring.
At last you come to Doctor None. He is struggling to say awake. "Please," he says, "try to fall asleep before it comes. They told me that things were disappearing faster and faster. That's why I moved up the timetable. That's why it's so important to sleep now, before it comes. Before the quiet..." He falls asleep before he can continue the sentence. You check his breathing and pulse – all normal.
"They're all just...sleeping," you tell Nina.
"So he was telling the truth?" Nina asks. "It was just a sleeping pill. Because with what he was saying, I thought maybe..."
"I know," you say. "But I think they truly believe going to sleep will make them die. Maybe when they all wake up, your mom will be sufficiently ashamed and will come home."
"I don't know," Nina says. "She seemed really into it this time. I thought it was just a thing for her to keep her mind off of other things. But maybe she's a true believer. She drank the Kool-Aid, right?" You grimace at her choice of words. "Maybe when they all wake up, Doctor None over there will just say that it wasn't the right time and they have to try over and over again."
"Maybe," you say. "But we can't do anything now."
And then you hear something – or, rather, you don't hear something. The person who had been snoring has stopped. You walk over to check on him and notice his chest isn't moving up and down anymore. He's not breathing.
"Nina," you say, "something's wrong."
Nina has already seen the expression on your face and rushes over to her mother. She shakes her and shakes her, yelling "Wake up!" but nothing happens. Her breath has gone out of her.
You go from person to person. They were sleeping, but now they are not. No more breath. No more pulse.
"I thought it was just a sleeping pill," you say.
Nina is hugging her mother's body. There are tears streaming down her face. You don't know what to do, what to say.
"We have to go," Nina suddenly says. She lays her mother back on the mattress. "We need to call the police. I mean, they have to show up for this, right?"
You pull out your cellphone and call 911. No answer. Only a recording. You tell Nina.
"Then we'll find someone," Nina says. "We'll drive to the police station. We'll do something."
You remember the house you saw nearby. "Wait here," you say. "I want to check something out."
You go outside and see that the sun is almost up. There is a stillness in the air that you don't like. No birds chirping, no grasshoppers making noise.
You walk over to the nearby house and knock on the door. Nobody answers. You knock louder and louder, finally yelling at them to open up. Still nobody answers.
There is a car in the driveway, so you know someone is home. You curse yourself for being this stupid and then cut in the window next to the door, then reach in and unlock it.
Inside, you find two people in the bedroom. They appear to be sleeping peacefully, but when you check their pulses, both are dead.
Nina is waiting for you outside the house. When she sees your expression, she says, "Them, too? Were they part of this cult, too?"
"I didn't see any pills," you say. "No pills or drugs. It looks like they just went to sleep. Do you think maybe..."
"No," Nina says, "no, it can't be true."
You go to the next house. This one has an alarm, which rings eerily out into the quiet street. You find the owners like the others, dead in their sleep.
You check the next house and the next and the next. You check the block. You and Nina spend hours going from house to house to house. You find people sitting in armchairs and children in bunk beds and even dogs and cats, their bodies motionless.
Everyone who was asleep is now dead.
You hold Nina as she cries and you can feel yourself crying now, too. Perhaps you hadn't cried before because of the exhaustion, because you had to keep moving, but now you cry along with her.
Because you are still alive in the quiet world, full of the dreamless and the dead.
er
"The world's already ending, Nina," Doctor None says. "You know it. Everyone knows it. With the stars gone, it won't be long until our sun is gone, too, and then we're next. We can wait for it to happen, wait to be taken into the void, but that's not us. Human beings were never good at waiting. The longer it takes, the more people are going to be hurt. You've noticed it, haven't you? People acting out in violence, people trying to hurt others? Because they know the end is coming and they don't know how to deal with it. This world will go up in flames before it disappears. And we don't want to see that happen. We would rather everyone be put to sleep, like a beloved pet."
"You're sick," Nina says.
"Perhaps," Doctor None says. "I did a lot of sick things when I worked for...well, let's call it the Doctor, shall we? When I worked for it, I did a lot of bad things, but I was also privy to a lot of information. I knew about other beings, beings that could help or hurt us. And when I realized that the Doctor wouldn't be helping us, that it was just going to sit back and wait like all the rest, I decided to do something about it instead."
A cellphone rings, the sound like a sonic boom. "Ah, sorry about that," Doctor None says as he lifts his phone out from his pocket. "One moment, please." He listens intently to the person on the other end before saying, "Thank you. Sleep well," and hangs up.
"It appears our timetable has advanced," Doctor None says to the others around him. They scurry back to the building behind them, including Nina's mother, who waves hurriedly at her daughter to come with them.
"I will explain the rest inside," Doctor None says. "You can either shoot me here or let me go. You can leave or listen to the rest of what I have to say. Your choice." Then he retreats along with the rest of his followers.
"Nina," you say.
"I'm going," she says. "I want to get my mother out of there."
"This isn't going to end well," you say.
"She's my mother," Nina says.
"I know," you say. "I'll go with you."
Nina smiles at you and says, "Thanks."
Together, you walk towards the building. The people in the brown robes and hoods have lit lamps outside so you can finally tell what it is: an old abandoned hospital in an old part of the city, most of the buildings covered in graffiti. It's a part of the city that borders on some old residential areas – you can see houses made from brick and stucco faintly and you wonder if anyone will answer the door if you run over there.
Still, you follow Nina inside the old hospital and find that the people have made the inside into what looks like a large bedroom. They have cots and blankets set up everywhere. Most of them have removed their brown robes and hoods and they all look surprisingly normal. No murderous grins or sinister facial scars. They are all normal people who appear to be getting ready for a sleepover.
"Glad you decided to join us," Doctor None says when he sees Nina.
"I'm not joining you," Nina says. "I just want to get my mother and get out of here."
"Honey," her mother says. "I've made my decision. I wanted you to be with me when it happens."
"When what happens?" Nina says. "I still don't understand what the hell you are talking about – Doctors and nothing? This is all crazy talk."
"Perhaps," Doctor None says. "I haven't gotten to the relevant part yet. The Doctor, as I called it, wasn't the only higher being that I knew. I had contact with another being, whom I called Cronus. This being lived only in dreams." As he was saying this, he moves out among the people and hands them each a yellow pill. "It told me what was going to happen and how nothing could stop it. But at least it wanted to help. I told it what I wanted and it agreed. It agreed to put the world to sleep."
"I still don't understand," Nina says.
"Cronus lives in dreams," Doctor None says. "It can be in as many dreams as it wants. It can be in every person who is dreaming. And inside them, it can do anything it wants. It can make them do anything it wants." Doctor None looks at his watch. "It's already started now. Everyone who was dreaming has stopped breathing. They will die a nice and pleasant death in their sleep. And once the other side of the world goes to sleep, they will do the same."
"That's..." Nina says. "That's impossible."
"Is it?" Doctor None says. "Look at this." He goes forward and shows Nina the yellow pills he has been passing out. "It's just a regular dose of Ambien. It's not harmful. It's only going to put us to sleep. And when we go to sleep, we will have a wonderful dream and will never wake up." Doctor None smiles and gulps down the pill. "I guarantee you, it's much better than the alternative."
Nina turns around and yells, "Mom!" but it's too late: her mother has already swallowed her pill. "Spit it out, Mom, please," Nina pleads.
"Don't be like that, Nina," her mother says. "If you take one, too, we can be together in dreams."
"Mom, please," Nina says, tears in her eyes, but it's no use. Her mother is laying down on a mattress and covers herself in a blanket.
"You'll see," her mother says. "The dreaming is much better than the nothing."
Everyone is laying down and closing their eyes. Does Ambien work this fast? Could Doctor None have given them something else? Some poison?
The images of Jonestown race through your mind, of people poisoning themselves with knockoff Kool-Aid, of everyone just laying down to die.
You go from person to person. They are sleeping now or trying to sleep. You check their pulses, their breathing. They are not dead. They are all breathing fine, breathing normally. One of them is even snoring.
At last you come to Doctor None. He is struggling to say awake. "Please," he says, "try to fall asleep before it comes. They told me that things were disappearing faster and faster. That's why I moved up the timetable. That's why it's so important to sleep now, before it comes. Before the quiet..." He falls asleep before he can continue the sentence. You check his breathing and pulse – all normal.
"They're all just...sleeping," you tell Nina.
"So he was telling the truth?" Nina asks. "It was just a sleeping pill. Because with what he was saying, I thought maybe..."
"I know," you say. "But I think they truly believe going to sleep will make them die. Maybe when they all wake up, your mom will be sufficiently ashamed and will come home."
"I don't know," Nina says. "She seemed really into it this time. I thought it was just a thing for her to keep her mind off of other things. But maybe she's a true believer. She drank the Kool-Aid, right?" You grimace at her choice of words. "Maybe when they all wake up, Doctor None over there will just say that it wasn't the right time and they have to try over and over again."
"Maybe," you say. "But we can't do anything now."
And then you hear something – or, rather, you don't hear something. The person who had been snoring has stopped. You walk over to check on him and notice his chest isn't moving up and down anymore. He's not breathing.
"Nina," you say, "something's wrong."
Nina has already seen the expression on your face and rushes over to her mother. She shakes her and shakes her, yelling "Wake up!" but nothing happens. Her breath has gone out of her.
You go from person to person. They were sleeping, but now they are not. No more breath. No more pulse.
"I thought it was just a sleeping pill," you say.
Nina is hugging her mother's body. There are tears streaming down her face. You don't know what to do, what to say.
"We have to go," Nina suddenly says. She lays her mother back on the mattress. "We need to call the police. I mean, they have to show up for this, right?"
You pull out your cellphone and call 911. No answer. Only a recording. You tell Nina.
"Then we'll find someone," Nina says. "We'll drive to the police station. We'll do something."
You remember the house you saw nearby. "Wait here," you say. "I want to check something out."
You go outside and see that the sun is almost up. There is a stillness in the air that you don't like. No birds chirping, no grasshoppers making noise.
You walk over to the nearby house and knock on the door. Nobody answers. You knock louder and louder, finally yelling at them to open up. Still nobody answers.
There is a car in the driveway, so you know someone is home. You curse yourself for being this stupid and then cut in the window next to the door, then reach in and unlock it.
Inside, you find two people in the bedroom. They appear to be sleeping peacefully, but when you check their pulses, both are dead.
Nina is waiting for you outside the house. When she sees your expression, she says, "Them, too? Were they part of this cult, too?"
"I didn't see any pills," you say. "No pills or drugs. It looks like they just went to sleep. Do you think maybe..."
"No," Nina says, "no, it can't be true."
You go to the next house. This one has an alarm, which rings eerily out into the quiet street. You find the owners like the others, dead in their sleep.
You check the next house and the next and the next. You check the block. You and Nina spend hours going from house to house to house. You find people sitting in armchairs and children in bunk beds and even dogs and cats, their bodies motionless.
Everyone who was asleep is now dead.
You hold Nina as she cries and you can feel yourself crying now, too. Perhaps you hadn't cried before because of the exhaustion, because you had to keep moving, but now you cry along with her.
Because you are still alive in the quiet world, full of the dreamless and the dead.
er