the chain

and if you don't love me now

"You're the cause of your suffering," Vecna tells you, "I can end it for you. No more guilt, no more terrible memories, no more fear. You don't have to live afraid anymore."

"No," you whimper, squeezing your eyes shut, "P-Please."

"I'm already showing you mercy."

You barely hear the first few notes. Vecna digs his long nails into your skin, almost piercing it as you let out a shout, "I want to live-"

"That doesn't matter much to me; or your friends," he responds, "your death is inevitable; it could have happened three years from now, or three minutes from now. Isn't it comforting to know that it isn't so far away? Take solace in knowing how it ends."

Tears stream down your cheeks and you try not to imagine what's truly happening to you. In some way, you're thankful you're here instead of experiencing the physical pain of your body breaking. Vecna seems to tense and his grip softens for a moment. You pry open your eyes, tears blurring your vision as you follow Vecna's gaze. He turns his head, his throat letting out a low, dissatisfied groan.

You can see something, small and circular at first but it seems to grow with the music. You can recognise the tune and it brings a steady beat to your heart. It's lighter now, the circle of colour breaking through the vast red.

You don't care that Vecna turns to glare at you. You keep your eyes on that circle of light. It's Robin and Steve. And... and you. You can see yourself in the distance, your feet beginning to lift off of the steady ground. You're in Eddie's trailer still. You're there. They're standing in front of you, your friends. You can hear their faint screams.

"Eddie," you realise, a small smile growing upon your lips. It's Eddie playing your favourite solo from your favourite song. In front of you, you can see Eddie. His hands work the strings of his guitar. Every note or so, he'll look down at his expert hands but his gaze is always on you, terrified and desperate. Steve pulls Robin away and she crashes herself into his chest. You can see her hand gripping his shirt as he squeezes his eyes shut, turning to rest his forehead against the top of her head before they leave the framed circle. 

Vecna pushes your face forward and all you can see are his blue, angry eyes, as his hands are on you again, "They can't save you. It's over - you and your friends will lose."

You can hear the music growing, it's different to what you're used to. The guitar is at the forefront of it, with no drums and no voice. But the solo is... it's excellent.

"E-Eddie..." you let out a soft cry as you smile. You're reminded of your time with him, swapping questions and facts - along with some light insults. The night he grabbed a can of Spaghetti-O's and offered it to you, giving you a judgemental look when you declined in disgust. How he let you rest into him when you were freezing, but not before whining and getting uncomfortable with his offer for warmth. You remember how often you willed yourself to ignore the fond softness in his eyes. And you remember his comforting touch underneath the boathouse tarp, bathed in blue.

You have to get back. You have to live.

You think about pool parties at Steve's house before they became synonymous with Barb and missing people. The night Nancy broke up with him and how desperately you tried to cheer him up. You remember how his face fell when you met Robin for the first time because he hated how the two of you made fun of him together. Even then, he knew it'd become a problem. But now, he's used to it. He even dishes it out. You think of staying at the video store after hours, all three of you watching new releases and stealing snacks from the front desk. Steve even let Dustin and Mike come one night, even though they wanted to watch A New Hope - again. Right now, you wouldn't mind watching it a thousand times if it meant you were back there with them. All of these moments in your memory blend into one.

I want to live.

As the guitar picks up, you lurch forward and attack your teeth to Vecna's close wrist. The surprise of your attack catches him off guard and you feel the vines around your wrist weaken. You whip your hand forward but only the right one comes unstuck.

Using it to claw at the vines around his neck, Vecna grunts and stumbles back. You clasp your hand around a vine, digging your claws in and grunting when you wretch it away. You're closer to the ground now, and you use your body to shove at the giant wall. 

Suddenly, your other arm springs free. Wasting no time in running, your legs jolt with pain as you break into a desperate, panting sprint. The path is clear, illuminated by the portal towards your physical form. With every step, the music grows louder and louder. It's blaring in your ears now.

You're about to touch the gate but you're wrenched back, a vine tugging on your ankle. It smacks you to the floor, rapidly dragging you against the ground and towards Vecna. Letting out a grunt, you look down at the thin but strong vine. You reach your hands out towards a large, cracked boulder, yelping as you clutch onto it for dear life.

I want to live.

Panting down at the vine, you use your other foot to begin kicking at it. You angle your attack, using your heel to smash it into the hard surface of the boulder with a satisfying squish. You're on your feet again, running faster than you've ever had to. You're so close now and you don't dare look back. If you did, you'd see Vecna's eyes burning with hostility. He raises a hand, sending large chunks of debris into the ground. They fall from the red storm above you but they do nothing to deter your path.

Your lungs are on fire and with every breath, you feel yourself becoming more desperate. The music is almost over, you recognise the last notes of the solo. With your right hand stretched towards the gate, and a large chunk of debris trailing closely behind you, you shove yourself into the portal of light.