Act IV: Ashes

A short distance from the cabin where a tragedy was being drafted, a town was about to drift into sleep. It was late, and most of the households had already gone dark. But just a few hours ago the town had burst into activity as the residents left their routines to come out onto the streets in response to the strange phenomenon that had taken them in absolute surprise. Karen Wheeler could distinctly recollect the incident when all the lights of the house had flared up all at once. She had nearly lost her shit, but before she could run away with Holly in her arms, the lights had slowly returned to their usual intensity. Probably a dozen calls to the local power station made by the residents had gone unanswered, which was another strange phenomenon in itself. Karen couldn't remember the last time a call to the Hawkins National Lab was not picked up before two rings.

She shivered as she remembered the other incidents that had rocked their quiet town a year back; Will Byers had gone missing in the woods for almost a week before he was rescued by Jim Hopper. On the same night, her son, Mike Wheeler encountered a Russian spy in his school and nearly lost his life. But the threats had actually started almost a week back when her daughter's friend Barbara had also disappeared in the woods and was never found again. Something strange was strangling the peaceful town of Hawkins and Karen could not shake off the feeling that Mike and Nancy knew more about them than they let on. Maybe one day she could…

"Karen? KAREN?"

Karen dropped the book from her hands in alarm and quickly got out of the bath. She could clearly discern the alarm in her husband's voice. As far as she could remember, Ted had rarely gotten excited in his life. So, what was so important that he was almost yelling? Before she could wrap the towel around her body, Ted crashed through the door and found his wife standing naked in front of the bathtub.

Before Karen could let out a faint mocking scream, Ted started speaking in a rush, "Have you seen the flower vase?"

Great, the man finds his wife in the bath, and all he could think about is the... FLOWER VASE?'

"WHAT?" Karen screamed as she realized what Ted was looking for.

"The flower vase you and…"

Karen didn't let her husband finish and interjected angrily, "I remember the flower vase. I also remember the promise you made me Ted. You were never to bring that up in this house, EVER AGAIN."

Ted sighed and spoke quietly, "I remember. But I need to find it, please."

"Why?" Karen was somewhat intrigued now. Ted had never shown so much excitement even when KFC opened a new outlet near their house, what had gotten into him?

Ted started stuttering, " I… had… you know. It's not…"

Karen wrapped the towel around her body and went to her husband. She often forgot the young accountant she fell in love with all those years ago. Ted may appear different now, but deep inside he was still the same man who placed his family above everything else. Karen touched her husband's face and spoke softly, "You had a dream?"

"How did you…" Ted was simply amazed.

"Cause, I'm me, and you're you," Karen chuckled, "Now tell me."

"I saw Mike." Ted blurted out the words as Karen breathed sharply.

"Then?"

"He was running around the house looking for something. I caught him, and when he looked at me, I found him crying."

Karen covered her mouth with her palm as Ted continued, "I asked him what was wrong. He said that the Promise has been broken and he needed to find the vase right now to forge it back."

Karen spoke quietly, "That's nonsense. The promise was never broken because SHE WAS NEVER BORN," she shouted the last words as if trying to convince herself.

Ted shook his head and spoke, "I know it doesn't make much sense. But I'm getting an odd feeling about it all. Help me find the vase, please."

Karen sighed but agreed a second later, "Alright. But once we find it, you are coming straight to bed."

Ted nodded eagerly as if he couldn't believe it would be so easy. But he had no clue that Karen had a similar dream almost one year back on the same night Mike had nearly died in the school. Her dream was a bit different though; she saw an indistinct shape standing in front of the door to the Wheeler residence, waiting to enter but couldn't. When she had asked the figure what it wanted, it had replied in a broken voice, 'You Promised'. And then it disappeared in a cloud of grey mist as Karen felt a searing pain in her heart and a feeling of loss that stayed with her for days. Although it was an impossible idea, somewhere deep inside her heart, Karen could almost recognize that indistinct figure that should not exist in this world. She had never discussed her dream with anyone, but maybe the flower vase would give her the answer. After all, it was the embodiment of the promise they had made to that woman all those years ago.

The couple left the bathroom in search of the artifact that had probably lost its significance when unknowing to them, Eleven had surrendered to her fate. They would probably never get the chance to find how close they were in keeping their last promise.

Back in the endless nightmare, Mike couldn't remember for how long he had been sitting on the dark ground that stretched to the infinity. The magical force that had healed his wounds and taken away his fatigue was finally gone. He felt cold, hungry and sad. But it wasn't the cold that bothered him, it was something wet, like... suddenly he felt something at his feet. He looked down and saw a strange dark liquid covering the ground which was dry even a few minutes ago. The fluid was only inches thick but spread all around him, shining like black glass and reflecting the endless darkness above him. Then he was shocked to realize that he could faintly see the wet surface around him. There was no light here, but there was a faint glow that was coming from above. Mike looked up, and his jaw dropped as he witnessed a cloud of glitter above his head. It was composed of tiny pulses of light vibrating in a chaotic rhythm.

Fireflies,' Mike understood what they were. The lights were nothing but thousands of Fireflies that kept flying above his head, circling his body in an endless flight. They provided the light as well as the warmth that he desperately needed at the moment. Mike squinted his eyes and noticed that they were not just green but varied in a multitude of colors, he wanted to get a better look. A moment later, the cloud descended towards him as if they had heard his request. Mike felt awed as the divine light encircled him and provided some measure of comfort in that vast and cruel sea of darkness.

Mike instinctively put out his finger, and an orange-colored insect landed on it. Immediately something thrust him forward, and he was engulfed by a white tunnel. He was hurled forward through the tunnel at the speed of thought, and before he could scream, he found himself sitting on a chair inside a strange room. The room had a white colored floor, white walls, and white ceiling. The surrounding was extraordinarily bright, and it took a moment for Mike's eyes to adjust to the glare that nearly blinded him. Then he saw the man who was standing in front of him. He wore a black suit and had white hair, but his face was still a blur. Mike felt as if he had known that man forever, but he didn't recall meeting someone like that in his entire life. Suddenly he felt scared as he realized that he needed to please that man at all cost.

'Oh, how much he wants to please him. Whatever that man asks, Eleven will do.' Mike inhaled sharply at that thought. No, he was Mike, not Eleven. He needed to remember that she was gone.

The man spoke in a soothing voice that reminded Mike of his grandfather, "Focus on the table."

Mike acted without thinking and looked down on the table in front of him. On top of the table rested a can of coke. He felt thirsty, so he reached out to grab the drink. A fraction of a second later, he felt a cold metallic touch to his ribs and realized that something had gone terribly wrong. He stared in amazement as another man in a white apron pushed a metallic rod toward his chest. The feeling came slowly, and a second later, the rod made a buzzing sound. Mike felt a jolt spreading from the point where it had touched his ribs. Then he felt a horrible wave of pain and nausea that made him wretch violently.

"Now now, Eleven." The man said in a soothing tone, "You need to follow instructions."

Mike struggled to move his shaking hands away from the table. The metallic rod was pulled back immediately, but he could still feel the touch. His ribs were on fire, and the pain came in waves. He gasped for breath and howled like an animal.

Back in the cabin where a tragedy was being concluded, Steve held Mike in his arms. The boy had passed out. 'Poor kid,' Steve thought, 'if only I was there.' He didn't know what he could've done, but he would've done something. He had seen Mike's devotion towards Eleven and felt the need to save the kid at all costs. But he had failed, just like everyone in this room right now.

On their way back from the tunnel, the kids told him everything about the last year. Steve listened with rapt attention, but he had a hard time believing all of it. Especially the part about the inseparable bond between Mike and Eleven. They were just kids, what did they understand about love? Then he took one look into Mike's eyes and believed every damn word of it. Mike cared for that girl in a way that even Steve was never able to care for Nancy. Steve smiled as he swerved the car towards Hopper's cabin. Mike Wheeler had achieved something that no one could have dared to try in the world. He had healed a terrible wound with nothing but innocence and affection.

Steve, the 'King' of Hawkins School, had taken a liking to this bunch of fierce heroes. They were fearless, relentless and most importantly, they were willing to go to any length to help their friends. He had earlier made a joke to Nancy about being a damn good babysitter. On his way back from the tunnel, Steve realized that he wasn't a babysitter, he was a King who had found his army in these five kids. He had laughed when Dustin gave out their names in a serious face, "The Ranger, The Bard, The Cleric, The Paladin, and The Zoomer. And Eleven is our mage."

'And now their Mage was dead, and the Paladin has fallen.'

Nancy came running to help her brother. Steve looked at her with a determined face, "Wait, I've got him. Just give me some space. Someone bring some water, damn it."

Lucas ran to the kitchen.

Steve made up his mind and whispered quietly, "I'm sorry for what happened today, but you'll overcome this loss and become strong one day. One day you'll become King of Hawkins School, and no one would be able to take that away from you. But on that day, you would also realize that some things are out of even a King's reach. You would realize that there wasn't a single thing you could've done that night which would have made a goddamn difference."

The world wasn't fair. Eleven, the girl who saved them, was lying dead on the couch. Mike, the only one who believed that she could do it, was lying unconscious in Steve's arms. A love story so pure and innocent that the world had to tear away the pages to rewrite it. Steve sighed and felt a drop of water running down his cheek. Damn fuck, he was crying in front of Nancy and Jonathan and pretty much everyone. But it felt okay to cry. He wanted to apologize to Eleven, "I couldn't save you. But I'll damn well save Mike, promise. I'll always be there for him and his friends."

Mike was still in the room with the white walls and ceiling. He was crying and begging for the pain to stop. But then he looked at the man in the Black suit and gasped as he felt the impending doom. He couldn't do what the man wanted him to do. In fact, he had no fucking clue about what that man wanted from him or how he was supposed to please him. The other man in the apron raised the metallic rod again and came towards him slowly and gently as if he had been doing this for quite some time.

"Please, no, not the pain..."

Something inside him woke from slumber and looked through his eyes in defiance. The can was suddenly crushed by an invisible but vehement force that shivered him to the core. He didn't know how he did it, but it made the man happy. Mike fought a wave of nausea and felt a warm fluid coming out of his nostril. It reached his lips. 'It's sour, it's... Blood.' Mike felt dizzy and hungry, and his head was going to split apart.

'Was this how Eleven felt every time she had to use her powers? And this is just a can but when she lifted the van...' Mike couldn't think anymore.

It wasn't impressive, it was actually sickening. The power raged inside of him, threatening to pull apart every cell in his body. It was a terrible and violent force that was waiting to unleash itself on this world. He looked at the man with white hairs in disgust as realization dawned on him. The man would die tonight, she would crush him like that can. But then the man came forward, and he felt the power seeping away from his body and going back to slumber. Mike felt a massive headache, not to mention the sudden hunger that followed. He wanted to get this over with.

'She wants to die,' the realization hit him like a crushing anvil. Suddenly he was hurled out of the chair and thrown back into the darkness.

Mike stood still in the void. The fireflies were dancing around him, blinking, and calling to him. He felt a sickening feeling in his stomach.

"Superpower my ass, this is like fighting someone with a sword while holding the blade" he shouted at the darkness surrounding him.

Mike suddenly remembered the day when Eleven had to use her power for a few hours continuously while Mike and his gang were trying to find the gate using compasses. Two hours of fighting that enormous power while walking alongside them. He cursed as he remembered how Eleven had begged him to turn back because she was feeling sick. But Mike Wheeler didn't listen to her plea, he kept pushing her to her limits, and she endured the suffering because she didn't want to disappoint him. 'FUCK.'

Without thinking, he stretched out his arm and caught a blue firefly. Then it happened again. The throw, the white tunnel, then... 'Darkness.'

Back in the lab where the end of the world had commenced, an old man with white hairs and wearing a lab coat painfully made his way to the central lab. Dr. Owens had never felt luckier than he was feeling at that moment. He was sure that he would be dying tonight, along with the rest of the world but Subject Eleven had saved them all.

'Just like she was supposed to,' he started humming a tune as he walked towards the table with a working lamp but stopped with a hiccup as he saw the pool of semi-dried blood. There were no bodies around, and the pattern clearly indicated that a person had bled severely from their head while lying on the table. 'The hemorrhage,' he started limping to the wing towards his left as fast as his wounded leg would allow him. A few excruciating minutes later he reached a room and crashed through the door. Then he made his way to the bed and tried kneeling down but his wounded knees gave away, and he fell down on the ground. Before losing consciousness for the second time that day, he remembered the face of a woman who had lost everything in her life, then everything went dark around him.

At that exact moment but beyond the reaches of time and space, Mike Wheeler was running through the woods in the night. It was raining heavily, and he was soaked to the bones. His feet hurt because he had no shoes. Pinpricks of pain spread from the bottom of his feet, and Mike realized that his feet were bleeding. It hurt like hell, but he kept running. Suddenly his feet got tangled in a root, and he fell down and hit a stump. The fall injured his shoulder, and he wanted to cry out in pain but forced himself to swallow the scream. The bad men were coming for her, no... for him. He got up to run again and was blinded by a light. He wanted to run away from the light, but something stopped her... no him... 'What is going on? Why am I keep thinking myself as El?' Mike shook his head angrily.

Then he almost turned to run away but suddenly felt as if a pair of soft but steady hands had gripped him and was pulling him out of a dark void that was trying to swallow her. The pair of soft arms then secured her in a tight embrace.

'He is here, the one whom she had been trying to find even though she had never known him. She had felt him calling to her. The boy who knew, the boy who felt and the boy who cared. At long last, two souls who were destined to be together had discovered each other in the void. It felt like an eternity.' A massive thunderclap shook the air as she gave in and rested her head on his shoulder. She would never have to run again.

The lights went out. Mike stared in disbelief as the figures moved towards him. An ethereal figure walked towards himself and spoke earnestly, "Hi!"

The real Mike Wheeler kept looking in awe as his jaw dropped, 'Was this actually what happened that night?'

Did Eleven know at that exact moment that Mike was the one she had always been searching for? It wasn't just a coincidence, she didn't randomly become attached to him like everyone thought. She had been searching for him ever since she had opened her eyes for the first time.

'But why?' Mike wondered but didn't give a damn. With deep regret, he realized that he had also been doing the same. They were both looking for each other since the day they were born. He had no answer for this feeling but there wasn't a single element of doubt in the emotions they expressed for each other. Mike's mirror-image moved close to her and spoke earnestly, "Who are you?"

He was shivering in her rain-soaked dress and didn't have the energy left to answer the question.

'Why are you asking, you already know.' Mike berated his image. It was freezing, rainwater seeped through her shirt and made him feel wet and cold. The doppelganger took off his jacket and came towards him.

"The hell are you doing?" Lucas was half amazed and half angry.

Mike put the jacket on her and then gently held onto his shoulders as her feet gave away. He spoke with in a kind voice, "Let's take her home."

Flashback, this time Mike felt it coming, he embraced it and was returned into the endless void.

Joyce took the water from Lucas's shaking hands, dipped a cloth in it and gently rubbed it on Mike's face. Nancy stood against the wall, a worried look darkened her face. Dustin was pacing the room, and Lucas just stood there, resolute but broken.

"We all got broken tonight, didn't we?" Joyce muttered to herself as she slowly made peace with this new reality.

A few miles from the cabin, an old man was not ready to give up just yet. Dr. Owens regained consciousness sometime later and managed to sit up with a painful groan. Then he ran his hand below the bed, opened a secret compartment and took out a small vial containing a clear fluid. Even after all these years, the panacea appeared the same, and it would definitely perform its duty tonight. But a moment later he cursed loudly as he remembered that he had no clue about the whereabouts of the patient. He knew where Hopper lived, but he also knew that he didn't keep Eleven there. The paranoid police officer probably hid Eleven somewhere in the woods which had skipped the radar of the agents. Only if the chief knew which side Dr. Owens stood, he might have revealed this information. 'And save his daughter's life,' Dr. Owens gritted his teeth in frustration and yelled defiantly, "There are more than one ways to fulfill a prophecy, Teresa. HE WILL SAVE HER." He paused for a moment and spoke inaudibly, "So that she can save him."

Then he walked out of the room in search of salvation.

A/N: Hi everyone. It's been almost two months since I had published anything and I am so sorry for this gap. I had a few kinks in my life and I am happy to declare that things are back in gears now. I am back to writing in full throttle and there will be weekly updates to all my works from now on.

Please let me know what you think about this chapter. It's been too long since I've penned my thoughts and I am afraid that the quality might have gone down. It feels great to be back and hold onto your seats. Things are going to go epic soon.