Chapter 17
A nine-year-old boy that was white, has light brown hair, blue eyes, and a bit taller than everyone else woke up and looked around; confused and dizzy but recovering. The boy was in a chamber-like cage with a hard, stone floor, and tightly close bars. A sharp pain struck the back of his head; the boy rubbed his head, looked at his hand, and saw a little bit blood on his hand, but not enough to be life threatening. However, the pain still hurt.
"Uhh, what happened?" the boy asked.
"Edward! Are you alright?" Betty asked surprised.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Where…are we?" he asked.
"We're in the sewers." Betty explained.
"Betty?! How did you get here?" Edward asked shocked.
"Same as you. Got knocked out then dragged into this cage." She explained.
"How long have you been here?" Edward asked.
"A few days." Betty answered.
"So that's where you've been. How come you're not hungry or thirsty?" Edward asked confused.
"He's been giving me food and water." Betty explained.
"Who has?" Edward asked.
Betty pointed to a boy sitting on a wooden rocking chair; the darkness completely covering him with only the sunlight illuminating his silhouette. Edward got up and approached the bars to get a closer look. Unfortunately, he couldn't see that far. Edward pulled and banged on the bars.
"Hey! HEY! Let us out!" he screamed.
"Don't do that, Edward, I've tried that already." Betty warned.
Suddenly, the boy got up and approached the cage. The sunlight finally revealed him to be Henry. His eyes were white with demonic teeth, Edward was horrified. When Henry reached the cage, he banged the bars really hard.
"Do not bang on the bars." Henry growled.
"Henry, what…what happened to you?" Edward asked horrified.
"Pennywise did this to him." Betty explained.
"Pennywise?" Edward asked confused.
"He's this demon. He's possessed Eddie and he's the one that did this to Henry." Betty explained.
"Surely you've tried something to get Henry to snap out of it, right?" Edward asked shocked.
"Don't you think I've tried? I've tried every single trick I could think of, but nothing worked." Betty snapped.
Edward looked at her shocked. He realized that Betty wasn't acting like her usual self. She was usually kind, brave, smart, and caring, but now she was…numb; like she had lost all hope and feeling. Henry turned around and headed back to the chair. Edward banged on the bar again to get his attention.
"Wait, Henry! Don't you recognize me?! It's me, Edward! I'm one of your best friends! I know you're in there, come back to us! Please." He pleaded.
"I'm not the Henry you once knew, he's gone. Now, do not bang on the bars." Henry growled.
He went back to the chair and sat back down. Edward was defeated, there was no getting through Henry; he was long gone. It would explain where Henry was this whole time, but would not explain about what he was doing this whole time.
"He's not the boy I once loved." Betty sniffed.
Edward looked and saw Betty begin to tear up and a tear streamed down on her cheek. She covered her eyes and begin to sob. Edward hugged her and comforted her. After a few moments, Betty let go, looked at him, then dried her eyes.
"What…What were you doing in the woods?" Betty asked.
"I was getting away from my stepfather. He was being mean again." Edward explained solemnly.
"Why can't your mother just leave him?" Betty signed.
"She's too scared to, you know that." Edward reminded.
"Still." Betty scoffed.
"Why are you giving up?" Edward asked.
"I'm not. I'm just accepting fate, that's all." Betty explained.
"That's giving up." Edward pointed out.
Betty signed.
"I feel like I have nothing to live for. Henry was the first boy I fell in love with, but now, I'm seeing him turn into a monster." she said depressed.
Meanwhile
Pennywise headed back to the hidden door with a new body and sinister plans. Now that he had Richie, all he had to do now was kill a sinner, possess the rest of the loser's club, and kill the 2 of the 6 people that beat his father, but Pennywise was troubled. That girl his victims were with, something was off. She was human, true, but she didn't have the smell nor teeth of a human; except for the front teeth that was normal. Pennywise feared the worst. He entered the door and saw his father was waking up.
"Father, we have a problem." Pennywise spoke.
"What is it?" he said alarmed.
"There's another demon in Derry." Pennywise said.
"What?! Are you sure?" his father asked.
"Yes, I'm sure. I could sense it." Pennywise assured.
"How could you tell? Was it its scent, look, or how it acts?" his father asked.
"I could smell it and her back teeth weren't normal, they were sharp teeth and the way she looked at me when I revealed myself…it wasn't a normal reaction." Pennywise explained shaking.
"Does it eat the same prey as us?" his father asked.
"I don't know, but judging by the fact that she doesn't eat kids is a starter. It's not like we spoke that long." Pennywise guessed.
His father was silent for a few moments, wondering about what to do. If there was another demon in Derry, two things could happen; 1. The demon could get in their way there could be problems or 2. The demon could just be another demon looking for prey and it eats a different kind of prey. Whatever the case was, both meant this was a minor setback. If this demon was with the loser's club, it could reveal secrets about Pennywise and his father. Demons know each other you know.
"Pennywise, I want you to be careful. This demon could just be another setback, but I want you to be careful, alright?"
"Of course, father." He nodded.
"Oh Pennywise, I was thinking. Maybe it was time you should…kill a sinner. At least to show what you learned from me." He snickered.
"Of course father, I won't let you down." Pennywise smiled evilly.
He left the room and headed out of the sewers; ready for the next part of his plan.