Prologue: These Dreams
Author's Note: This story is set in an alternate reality. Please be aware some chapters may be mature for some audiences. Read at your own discretion.
1986
Tired of running, tired of being considered a loser, Eddie wanted nothing more to achieve something. He knew when entering the Upside Down, that it was possible his dreams would never be fulfilled, but for him, that was okay. What mattered more was protecting his friends and doing what was best for the greater good – even if it meant he wouldn't live to see the day. In this timeline, Eddie wasn't alone fighting the Demobats. Dustin was struggling to escape Hawkins to get back to the Upside Down, yes, but Robin, Steve, and Nancy weren't entrapped in Vecna's tentacles.
Nancy, Robin, and Steve made it to Vecna before the Demobats begun their assault on Eddie. Determined and downright pissed off, Nancy fired each of her shots deliberately where she knew Vecna would feel the most pain. First, she aimed for his chest – even though she wasn't sure he had a heart anymore. Next, she aimed for his head. It almost appeared as though the burns to his skin had become his armer, making him just a little less penetrable. Steve focused his sights on Vecna as Robin prepared her Molotov Cocktails.
"Go help Eddie and Dustin, Steve!" Robin instructed as she pelted her Molotov Cocktail at Vecna's chest. "Nancy and I have got this!"
Stevn, though skeptical, feared the loss of Henderson and so he obliged. He ran down the stairs and exited the Creel House as quickly as he could, all the while fearing one of Vecna's tentacles would reach out and grab him. He had to have some luck or something because not a single one tried to attack him. Outside he could see the Demobats switch course from where Eddie was standing with his trash barrel lid shield held high towards the Creel House. Their flight was slower than he remembered from when they attacked him. Thanks to the hive mind, the damage the girls did to Vecna also affected everything connected to him.
As soon as Robin and Nancy felt satisfied with the damage they had done to Vecna, they ran out of the Creel house to join with the others. Reunited, the group of teenagers escaped back to Hawkins. What they didn't know was what would greet them once they returned. Hawkins was in shambles, trenches of the Upside Down appearing. Vecna was still successful in securing his third kill, despite how hard everyone had worked to stop him.
It took some time, but Eddie's name was finally cleared of any wrongdoings concerning the Hawkins murders. With Jason dead, and so horribly so, Hawkins PD found it easier to pin them on him. It wasn't like he was there to clear his own name the way Eddie was.
Changed and more determined than ever, Eddie did graduate high school with the 1986 graduating class. He found a job at Hawkins Comics where he worked for a year. College felt out of reach for him until one day he decided if he didn't take every opportunity, then he wasn't living to the potential he now felt he needed to. Chrissy would never have the opportunities he would have, so it wasn't right for him to squander them. Community college was his first step, which he began in the Fall Semester of 1987.
After two years, he transferred to Simmons University in Boston, Massachusetts. Although his friends in Hawkins had become like family, Eddie wanted to venture out. In Boston, no one knew who he was. His name and reputation had never been tarnished out there. He wasn't alone though, with Nancy Wheeler attending Emerson University. Much to his own surprise, Eddie decided to pursue a degree in Law & Justice. Having been an outcast, poorly judged by his peers and everyone around him, he was determined to help those who were like him. Unsure of whether or not this degree, or possible career choice would even work out for him, Eddie decided to hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
In Boston, he found himself a new Dungeons & Dragons party, still adopting The Hellfire Club moniker, while still maintaining as much contact as he could with his original party in Indiana. With the move, his band disbanded, but Eddie's love of playing guitar did not waiver. Instead, he found himself playing Open Mic nights in clubs and coffee shops whenever he had a free moment to do it.
The year is now 1990. And Eddie's life? Well, it's about to get strange again…
