Author's Note: this is it, the epilogue. 2000 words minimum, that has to be a record or something, right? I can't believe we're finally at the end of this 4-month journey. It's been amazing and I have all of you out there in Fanfiction Land to thank for making it such a success. But I've gotta be honest: I probably won't be doing such a massive cross-over like this in a hurry. If I ever come up with a sequel for this story, I'm dropping at least 3 TV shows worth of characters ; ) One more time for the disclaimer before the curtains close:

I don't own Suite Life, Sonny With A Chance, iCarly, Hannah Montana, Ned's Declassified's, Lizzie McGuire or Dusty Chopsaw ; )

13 December, 2009

The Tipton Hotel - 03:42

Cody stared around him, his entire being filled with indescribable terror. The scene itself was nothing to fear. But in this immense void where he stood, Cody knew exactly what was coming. He was coming for him.

The green and silver of his mask shone like a beacon of despair as the scene changed dramatically to that of a blackened alleyway. Cody began sprinting wildly away from him, sidestepping the debris and trashcans in his way. But his legs felt like they were filled with lead; they didn't seem to want to move of their own accord without encouragement. Dusty Chopsaw was gaining on him now, the bloodied pick axe making swooping noises as it slashed through the air as he ran forward.

In no time, he had caught Cody by the scruff of his collar and thrown him against the cold back wall of the alley. Cody felt like he was on the verge of collapsing onto his knees from the sheer fear that gripped his very bones. Dusty Chopsaw had him in a vice-like grip, his massive hand closing around Cody's throat as he held him in place. Cody closed his eyes, his teeth chattering madly in his mouth as he heard rather than felt the pickaxe swinging towards his body.

But before it could make contact, he felt a torrent of salty tasting water engulf both him and Dusty as the wall behind him crackled and toppled into oblivion, sending them flying backwards where they were met with more torrents of water swirling around them. Cody tried to ignore the stinging sensation of salt burning his eyes as he tried to search in vain for the source of the water. But it was no use; it was all around him, threatening to overtake him in one fell swoop.

He watched in horror as Dusty Chopsaw, who had been floating not too far from him, disappear beneath the sudden waves. Cody cried out when he felt something tug at his ankle and yank him down into the depths. Try as he might, he couldn't break free from Dusty's iron grip on his ankle as he dragged him further down into the abyss surrounding them both.

Dusty had already disappeared, but he had accomplished what he'd set out to do; he was killing Cody slowly. And Cody knew it too as his eyes gazed up longingly at the water's surface overhead. The water was slowly filling his lungs until he felt sure they would burst from sheer pressure. His arms, which had been flailing about wildly seconds before, were beginning to lose vital blood circulation till they hung limply at his sides. This was it, he was going to die. Just as he was beginning to lose consciousness, he heard Zack's voice calling out to him as if from a long distance, but still painstakingly clear amidst the dense water:

"Cody!"

We only spun the web to catch ourselves

So we weren't left for dead

Something about his brother's voice gave Cody's renewed strength as he felt his limbs coming to life once more. He kicked out his legs sharply beneath him and felt his calf muscles pushing him slowly upwards.

I'm not dead

Just floating

He broke the surface with a loud gasp, his head bobbing upwards against the crashing waves. He gulped in life-saving breaths of air that went through his chest and straight into his brain. His breathing came out rapidly from his nostrils, his entire body shivering all over.

I'm not scared

Just changing

He steadied his breathing while kicking his legs out for balance. Without warning, the pickaxe found its way from beneath the waters and sliced through Cody's head.

That's when Cody woke up, bathed in sweat and yelling at the top of his lungs.

Suffolk County Jail – 03:42

Dusty Chopsaw lay atop the cramped single bed in a foetal position, his entire body trembling violently. His eyelids were half-closed as his eyes flickered open rapidly in succession while he tossed and turned in the wake of his vivid nightmare.

Like last night

They're not like tremors, they're worse than tremors

There are these terrors

And it's like, it feels as if somebody was gripping my throat and squeezing and…

He was back in the forest, searching hungrily for his prey. But the pressure of the weapon in his hand was all wrong. It didn't empower him at all; the heavy feeling in his hand from its sheer weight made the desire to throw it away all the more tempting.

He had finally cornered Nelson Duckworth off near the campsite. His body trembled with delight at the thought of being able to kill him finally. But no matter how he tried, Nelson kept dodging his attempts to strike at him. With each elusive movement, Nelson became cockier and began laughing more openly at Dusty's futile weapon. Dusty glanced down at his hand, expecting to find the pickaxe, but glared in shock at the blunt chisel in his hand. In his fury, Dusty struck at Nelson's laughing face, but missed yet again. Nelson was everywhere: in front of him, to his left, to his right and sometimes behind him. The laughter began ringing in Dusty's ears like an incessant siren till he thought his head might burst from the sound.

Don't you breathe for me

Undeserving of your sympathy

'Cause there ain't no way that I'm sorry for what I did

Then Nelson was in front of him, no longer laughing and cocking his head off to the side, regarding him with fascination. This face abruptly morphed into that of the chubby kid that he had murdered in the forest. Gibby Gibson began laughing openly while his hand clutched his bloodied torso all the while. Dusty's eyes began darting around him as more figures appeared by the solitary camp site. His first victim, the orderly, came to stand next to Gibby and shook his head solemnly while folding his arms across his chest. Dusty recognised the hollow expression of the security guard that he killed as he strolled towards him. Then there were the two girls from the alleyway, walking confidently forward on their glittering high heels. And finally, Martin and Loomer approached him from the left; Martin was chattering happily and completely oblivious to the blood running steadily down his throat. Billy regarded Dusty with a hungry expression similar to his own as he cracked the bones in his knuckles. Dusty started backing away slightly as they began closing in on him from every side.

A drink for the horror I'm in

For the good guys and the bad guys

For the monsters that I've been

Three cheers for tyranny

Unapologetic apathy

'Cause there ain't no way that I'm coming back again

"Stay back," Dusty commanded hoarsely as the bloodied figures formed a tight circle around him.

"We can't, Dusty. It's time for your come-uppance." Gibby responded with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"I have a weapon. I'll kill all of you." Dusty promised in a raspy tone, trying to dispel his fear that rang in every breath.

Amber began laughing uproariously right before she fixed him once more with a cold stare.

"How can you kill us when we're already dead?" she demanded frankly, taking yet another long stride towards him.

Amber grabbed the feeble chisel from Dusty's hand, closed her fist around it and broke it into little metal shards before tossing the pieces onto the ground.

"Wait," Dusty pleaded weakly at their close proximity.

"No. You didn't listen when we pleaded with you. You didn't wait for us," Ashley pointed out simply.

"Can we kill him now?" Billy asked eagerly.

"Not yet, Loomer. We have to draw this out for as long as possible. We'll break his spirit bit by bit. And then we'll kill him." Martin promised in a whisper laced with anticipation.

They were so close to Dusty now that only the length of his neck and head (which towered over his attackers) could be distinguished from their surrounding bodies.

"Wait, stop. Please." Dusty attempted once more, his heart hammering in his chest.

His eyes widened in horror as Bernie Quinn held a shiny pick axe in his chubby hands. To his right, Gibby Gibson produced a jack hammer from behind his back. Martin Kwerly carried a bloodied pairing knife in his hand. Amber, Ashley, Billy and the orderly's ghostly hands stretched out towards Dusty in a threatening stance.

"He's a wily one. Hit him where it really hurts," the orderly suggested with a devilish grin on his face as he opened his hand out towards Dusty, revealing several multi-coloured capsules resting in his palm.

Dusty watched in horror as fists and weapons crashed against his frail body with the intention to crush him into oblivion. As bone and metal crunched against his skin and steady warm blood flowed from out of him, Dusty felt a searing flame erupting through his entire body, as if he were being burned from the inside out. He cried out to the heavens, knowing full well that no answering cry of redemption would come.

So shut your eyes

Kiss me goodbye

And sleep

Just sleep

The Tipton Hotel

About two seconds after his scream, Cody heard his bedroom door open and footsteps coming to a steady halt in front of his bed. Then he felt two hands wrap around his neck and head to calm him down. Cody heard Zack's voice whispering and murmuring incoherent words that were supposed to soothe him.

"Zack," Cody murmured painstakingly, his throat feeling parched.

"Ssh, it's okay, Cody. I'm here." Zack responded soothingly while he rubbed Cody's back in a comforting manner.

"It's okay, Cody. You're safe now." Zack whispered over and over again in Cody's ear.

When Cody had gotten part of his breathing back, he realised that he was no longer underwater. He was in his bed in his family's temporary penthouse suite at the Tipton Hotel and it was nearly 4am. It had been a month since Dusty Chopsaw had tried to kill him, his brother and his friends while they attended summer school. The nightmares had begun on the first night that Cody had returned from West Roxbury with his family.

"Where's Mom and Dad?" Cody asked anxiously of Zack as his twin brother handed him a glass of water.

"They're still fast asleep in bed. They didn't hear you this time." Zack explained while Cody took a long sip from the glass of water in his hand.

"I'm really sorry, Zack. I didn't mean to wake you up." Cody apologised meekly.

"Don't worry bro, you didn't wake me up. I never went to sleep." Zack responded with a dismissive wave of his hand.

That's when Cody noticed the baseball bat that Zack held in his hand.

"What's that for?" Cody asked suspiciously, his eyes locked on the obvious weapon.

"I'm keeping watch. I told you before, Cody. No one's coming near our family ever again. I'll make sure of that." Zack promised with a determined look on his face.

"Go back to sleep," Zack urged in a kinder tone.

Cody obeyed and laid his head back on his pillow, keeping his eyes trained on the ceiling. Zack didn't move a muscle, but continued sitting at the foot of Cody's bed, his hands grasping the baseball hat firmly and assuredly.

Suffolk County Jail

Dusty nearly rolled off his bed as he literally jerked back to reality. His heart thudded violently in his chest and his entire body was clammy with sweat. He wiped some of the beads off his forehead with the back of his hand and readjusted his legs so that they now hung off the side of the bed. He had started having the same nightmare right after he had been arrested in West Roxbury and sent here. Yet another lengthy trial awaited him, but Dusty felt sure that he wouldn't return to Watertown Medical Facility once more. He was almost confident that his current jail cell would become his permanent home.

Sweet dreams are made of these

Who am I to disagree?

I travel the world and the seven seas

Everybody's looking for something

Dusty had even heard some of the prisoners whispering amongst themselves that he might not go to jail after all; perhaps the District Attorney might opt for the death penalty instead. He shuddered at the thought, already imagining himself seated in the electric chair and gasping at the metallic taste of electricity coursing through his veins. If there was any comfort in this thought, death would at least be swift. It wouldn't be drawn out and there wouldn't be enough time to dwell on the faces that he had come to fear the most.

I wanna use you and abuse you

I wanna know what's inside you

Dusty cleared his throat, feeling desperately thirsty. But there was no water in his cell to quench his thirst with. There was no one to rub his back soothingly and tell him that it was just a dream and to go back to sleep. He was well and truly alone in every way imaginable. As the four walls closed around him with agonising silence, Dusty found it ironic how he had set out months ago to lay a perfectly intricate trap for his unsuspecting victims so that he could finally execute his long-preserved revenge. It was ironic that a game of Manhunt had been his downfall. In the midst of soiling his hands, Dusty Chopsaw had watched in dismay as the trap that he had so meticulously laid out had closed around him instead. He was no longer 'The Woodsman'.

He was the prey.

Gonna use you and abuse you

I'm gonna know what's inside you

Musical References (in order of appearance):

1) Sleep – My Chemical Romance

2) I'm Not Dead – Pink

3) Sweet Dreams (Eurhythmics Cover) – Marilyn Manson

Firstly, I have two more people to give a special mention to:

PerennialKillJoy - Thanks for giving me 'Agent L' and 'Manhunt' as two amazing story concepts to begin with. I couldn't have written either one without that amazing creative brain of yours. You get all the royalties when I finally start writing the sequel to 'Agent L'.

Woundedhearts - I hope you enjoyed Dusty Chopsaw's final demise and had your shotgun raised high in the air.

To anyone else that I haven't mentioned, thank you so much for reading 'Manhunt'. To anyone who reads this in the future, I hope you'll enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Cheerio!