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After sixteen hours of being awake, Will began to feel tired. He lazily touched the wall, his eyes drooping in the darkness while his limbs treaded forward. He struggled to keep himself from falling into a deep sleep because he feared if he did, he would be dead.
He let out a deep breath, stopping in his tracks as he heard something in the distance. He turned his head around, his eyes squinting to find any light source that could help him know where he was.
These sewers were like a labyrinth, he couldn't see a damn thing from having so many tunnels and it was pitch dark. He was pretty much dead either way, but he still kept going. His determination filled inside of him as he wanted to get out of here. He just had to.
He couldn't hear the sounds of It anymore. The monster had somehow turned the other way, not hearing the boy's footsteps. The voices that It made had merely disappeared into whispering echoes that gently danced in his ears to alert him of danger.
He continued walking through the darkness until he saw something flash. His eyes winced and closed them tightly. Was it what he thought it was? He thought, knowing exactly what it was as he began walking towards it. His brain immediately woke up as he ran towards it. It was light.
He struggled to keep his eyes open from the light, but kept running towards the light in relief. "H-Hello?" He called out, his voice raw from not speaking for hours. "Is someone there?" His voice cracked in fear as there was no sound, only the sound of water dripping onto the ground. An orange light flickered on the side of a wall as he ran towards it, his heart pounding as he hoped for the best. He turned to the left, feeling the warmth and light envelope him to see something that he could never forget.
He saw a lighter, laying on the floor, its' flame flickering as it was ready to go out. Will ran towards it, quickly grabbing the lighter. He flinched at how hot the metal was, but still held the flame out in his hand. He shivered at the warmth of the flame, his body had adapted to the cold that he didn't notice he was shivering.
Will kept the lighter held in his hand, his hand quivering through the darkness as he lit his way through the sewers. His hope to getting out was stronger now as he went through the tunnels, but that would soon end in a matter of seconds.
"Will?" A voice cried out from behind, a voice that Will recognized. He turned around, his heart pounding as the flame lit the area in front of him.
In front of him were dozens of children, some who Will recognized in school, but others seeming to be from decades before he was born. The one who spoke was Jennifer Hayes, a girl who had gone missing a few months before Will had stumbled here. He had known her for being so sweet to him, also that she had gone to his funeral (and cried as his friends told him).
Since he had last seen her looked nothing to what she looked now. Her long, blonde hair was dirty, filled with guck from the sewers and dangled beneath her breasts. Her face was covered in grime and dirt, something that most girls would detest. Her long dress was ripped and torn almost every spot near her limbs. Her eyes were what terrified him. Her left eye was entirely gone, surrounded by dried blood that went up to her eyeyebrow. Her right eye was only white as it was drawn with dark red lines. She looked like a human doll, disposed and destroyed by abandonment.
Will now noticed that the other children looked just like Jennifer, looking lifeless, dead. Some of them had their limbs torn off and others had no heads. He saw James, Troy's best friend who came out to bully with him for so many years, stood across from Jennifer. He had disappeared around a few months after the death of George Denbrough. His neck had been bitten with almost razors, letting Will see his esophagus.
Will opened his mouth to scream, but no words came out. He took a step back, his heart pounding in fear. Was this real or was he hallucinating. "Will Byers," James spoke, not having trouble at all with his bitten throat. He took a step closer, making Will waver the lighter like a sword. His eyes showed fear and almost worry.
"Get- Get away." Will spoke out in a weak, quivering voice as he tried to sound strong, but it failed as he spoke. His body shook in fear and pure terror. His throat felt like it was closing, choking air away from him. He felt like he couldn't breathe through the closed space of the tunnels.
His lighter began to flicker as his thumb began to swell in hot pain from the flame, but he felt numb to the pain. His eyes continued staring at the children that stood before him. Will's eyes immediately went to a boy, younger than the rest who wore a yellow rain-slick coat and red rubber boots. His eyes filled with dried tears that stained his cheeks. He stumbled towards Will, walking to the flame as his appearance began to show through the light. Will whimpered, his heart pounding at the sight of a young boy with his left arm ripped off, showing the bone and dried blood that covered him arm and his yellow sleeve that looked like a pale orange. The boy's eyes were full, the hazel irises watching Will as he choked out a cry.
The boy that stood in front of him was George Denbrough.
"No," Will called out in a whisper, disbelieving what he was seeing as he took a step back. He felt the flame begin to die, beginning to conceal him in the darkness, but he could see the young boy's face as clear as day.
"Will," George said in a soft voice, his eyes staring at Will. "Tell my brother that it was his fault," His expression became frustrated and angry. "Tell my brother that he killed me,"
"Will tell him," Jennifer said in a quiet voice, blinking as she pretended to be normal. "Bill would be pleased to find this,"
Will didn't know what to say. His brain was struggling to find the right words as his mouth was ajar. A small flame trickled above the light and before he knew what would happen, he was filled in the darkness. His fingers shook as he was yelling at himself to run! To get the flame lit again! Whatever he did though, he couldn't find himself to.
Fingers began to crawl around him, touching his limbs and neck, dragging him into the darkness. Will let out a cry, sturggling to flame the lighter again. Panic was sinking in quickly. He didn't want to die here!
"LIGHT!" He screamed out loud, using his thumb to quickly light the flame. He needed to survive, he needed to get out of here for everyone. His friends, family, even the bullies who picked on him because of his clothes or from his father's emotional abuse. He needed to get out for his mom who couldn't live without her two sons alive and his brother, who's only best friend was Will. He needed to be there for Mike, who struggled with his English and didn't know how to do use his commas. "LIGHT PLEASE!" He screamed as tears began to spill down his cheeks.
Then just like a miracle, the flame lit back to life, burning his thumb as the fire erupted, reminding him gasoline touches fire. He cried out in pain, his grabbing his hand as the lighter fell down onto the floor. The metal clanged in the darkness, hitting the floor with a muffled sound of defeat. It sounded like the flame hit something, but Will couldn't see as he stumbled to stand.
A sheer cry came out, something that only a monster would make as the hands slipped from Will's view and the Lost Children that had disappeared out of thin air.
He felt down onto his knees, his body feeling almost as if he had run a marathon. He let out a deep breath, watching as the flame in the metal lighter began to deteriorate.
"I guess I beat the Mind Flayer." He muttered before letting out a dry laugh. His laugh ended though with a pitiful sob. He cried of hopelessness, knowing the truth of his problem. He knew he was going to die here. He decided that he could not run from death because no one would save him.
He laid down on the cement floor, curling into a tight ball, crying as tears fell down his cheeks. Here is the end. He thought.
Will laid his head on the floor, facing towards the lighter as the flame slowly faded. He closed his eyes, letting out a deep breath as he waited to die. The flame slowly disappeared in the darkness of the sewers, hiding the body of Will Byers, the boy who would finally die for the final time in his life.
