Time Sensitive ~Eddie Munson~

019

Argyle drove us to a gas station. We all get out and Jonathan calls for a bus ticket. I stood back watching everything happen. I see El's gaze catch a sign, "El?"

She walks back to us, "I know a way. A way to protect Max, from here."

El started to draw her diagram on the window of the van. She drew a picture of a stick figure with hair, "This is Max. When One," She looks at me, "Your dad, attacks, he will be in her mind. But I can do that too. I went into Mama's mind, into Billys, I can go into Max's. She can carry me to Vecna. I can piggy back. I can protect her, from one. Fight him from here."

Argyle looks, "Mind fight. Righteous."

Mike looks at her, "Wait, so you actually think this can work?"

She looks, "A bathtub would help," She looks at me, "And you can do it too."

Argyle laughs, "Yeah. Gotta be clean to enter the mind."

Mike looks at Argyle, "What? No, no. It's a sensory deprivation tank. It helps her calm down and focus on her powers."

Will looks, "Wait, we... We just passed a motel."

Mike replies, "Yeah, but they won't have enough salt."

Argyle looks at Will and Mike, "Well, how much salt are we talking here, my dudes?"

I looked at Jonathan as he talked to Argyle, "Well, it depends on the size of the tub, but a lot."

Argyle looks, "Does 600 pounds suffice."

Mike gives Argyle a weird look, "You know a place that has 600 pounds of salt?"

They keep talking about stupid shit, but all I can think about is how, if One, Henry, Peter, Vecna, if he is my dad, I will be meeting him. I hop in the van and we drive off.

We get to a pizza place, which I assume is a different place than Argyle works. They go in the back, empty two freezers and add salt to both. One for me and one for El. Argyle brings out two pairs of glasses, cardboard and pizza. El and I both grab a slice. Argyle said to me and El, "Oh, uh, too much flavor awesomeness can't overpower your batteries can it?"

El shook her head. Mike looks at Argyle, "Dude, this is pineapple."

Argyle looks at him, "Try before you deny."

El and I start to eat. We look at each other, then at Mike and Argyle and nod our heads. El looks at Mike, "It's good."

Mike made a disgusted face and said, "It's good? What do you mean?"
I laugh at their bickering. I look back to see Jonathan and Will hugging. They call us back and El and I take our socks off. We each lay in a tub. "Remember Maddy," El says, "Don't be scared."

I laugh, "If this is really my dad, I should be capable of his own power."

We both slip on our blocked glasses and lay back. I zone out like I did in NINA and all of a sudden find myself in an empty place, looking at a girl with red hair, under a blue light. I hear El say, "I found them."

I replied, "Me too."

I say, "They're carrying lights."

El replies, "Blue lights."

I watch Max, sit on the ground, talking to Vecna. I hear her talking about her brother Billy, how she wanted him dead. She hated herself for wanting that, because he was a shitty person. I started to think about my mom, before I saw her sitting, zoned out. I see the boy she's with, waving his hand in front of her face. I grab her hand, "I know you don't know me, but I'm with El. We are coming to help Max." Watching her face zoned out like that was scary. I close my eyes, zoning out like I have done when entering this fragment of my mind. I start to get flashbacks from a life and a person I have never met. I am all of a sudden in a memory. Not mine, of hers. I her Mike as El, "What's happening now?"

El replies, "I think. I am in a memory. A Max memory."

Then he said, "Maddy?"

I reply, "I am also in Max memory."

I wasn't sure what El was seeing, but I was watching her at a mall. Her walking with El. I watched her shop. Her face was light, was happy.

The boys asked if we saw Max. El replied, "No, but she's here. She has to be here."

I reply as well, "I see her with El shopping."

I remember seeing a DJ stand, as if we were going back to a junior high dance. I walk up to it, just to see me, Max and El all together. I saw Vecna holding Max. I look at El and hold a hand up for her to hold on. "Dad," I say.

I see him letting Max go and l see El running to Max. I watch him turn around and look at me, "Nine," He says, which echoes through my bones.

"No, my name is Maddy," I say.

"My sweet girl," He says walking to me, "You have grown so much."

I start to cry, "I have, haven't I? You have changed a lot as well Dad."

I feel his hand caress my face, "What's changed most?"

I look up and smile, "I'm not a helpless child needing my daddy anymore and you're a vicious creature. I loved you daddy, I idolized you for many many years, but you broke me, you ripped me to shreds," I grab my fathers hand, "I love you daddy."
I feel his grip on my hand let go and his face caress my cheek one last time, "I love you more sweetheart."

I put an arm up, "But being vicious isn't in my nature." I shoot him across the room holding him up, I scream. "I don't know your past, I don't want to know. When you turned into this, or if you were ever not. I am an amazing daughter daddy, but you were too blind to realize how wonderful life would have been with me."

I put my second hand up before screaming. I feel El come over and help. I start to hear things, as if my father was in my ear, "You will lose him, Nine. You will lose him."

I scream, "No I won't."

"Yes, if you destroy me, I'll take what's yours with me," He whispered.

I cried, "Don't lay a finger on his bastard!"

I screamed louder, the harder it got. I eventually felt myself fade into his mind. I saw red fog, let go and walked into it. I looked around, "Nine," He said.

"Daddy," I replied.

"You searched for a reason. You wanted to find me, I'm here. What do you want to say?" He asked.

"I didn't want to say anything. I wanted to know what I was capable of, I see now," I reply walking up to him.

He groans, "And what is that, Nine?"

I looked at him, "I have an incomparable sense of my powers, I have beautiful blue eyes, and I am incredible."

He laughs, "Your mother prayed you'd look like me, and besides the hair, we look identical."

I smile, "You- You have a sense of humor," I said.

He caresses my cheek, "You, Nine, are my blood. You are why I have created this. I created this for you, my beautiful baby. I have always watched out for you, but I am still your father. You should obey your father."

I nod, "I should. But daddy, I have realized, I need to obey no one but myself. I pray that you find somewhere better, because you wasted years making something I have absolutely no use for."

I shoot both my arms up and push him against a slimy pole or whatever the fuck that was. "I am happy daddy, and you won't take it away," I watched him disintegrate, before realizing that he had gotten Max, while I thought he was gone.

I shout, exiting his mind, finding Max's friend holding her. I jump out of the water and start crying and shaking. I watch Jonathan come over to comfort me, "Mike, tell her to get out of there!" I shout.

He yells, "El, get out! Maddy got him!"

El jumps up and hugs Mike and I continue to cry. I looked to Jonathan, "Give- hand me the glasses."

I slide them back on my face, fade back to find Eddie. I find him lying, in the dimension One claimed to have built for me, with Dustin. I start to cry. "Eddie," I scream, "Hang on Eddie! I'm going to be soon."

I fade out and jump back up, "No! NO! I fucking swore I'd get to him!"

Mike looks at me, "Eddie!"

I start to scream, "Fuck!"