by A. Eggleston
It was a little after 5:00 AM. The sunrise peaked just over the horizon. The sky was filled with streaks of light pink and orange, replacing the dark blue tint of the sky. The rays of the sun lit up the clouds. The air was calm and quiet. It was a beautiful, peaceful morning in the town of Springwood.
The chaos and destruction was over. The streets were empty. The town was as clean and pristine as it was before the evil was unleashed.
The air was calm. Not a single person was outside, as it was still early in the morning. The only sounds made were the faint chirping of the birds as they flew overhead. The dim sunrise acted as a sign for a new day. A new beginning. For the first time in decades, the children of Elm Street slept peacefully.
Out of the hazy air of dawn, not far from the street sign at the end of the block that read "1400 Elm Street", a bright flash of light appeared, followed by the warbled sound of an explosion. The same rift that transported Ash and Evelyn to Freddy's time had appeared yet again, taking them back to present day. It was like cannon fire, leaving behind a cloud of thick smoke.
Ash and Evelyn were forcefully shot out of the rift. Both of them were falling from a height of nearly twenty feet from the ground. The explosion left them with soot and debris on their face and arms. Both of them painfully landed on the side walk. The force from the fall sent them rolling on the ground for a short distance. Their bodies were scraped by the concrete.
Ash had been laying still on the sidewalk when Evelyn continued to tumble closer to him. She rolled on the ground before being halted by his still body. "Oof!" she exclaimed as her left side crashed against him. She laid on her stomach, with the concrete acting as a cold, hard, pillow below her face.
The gravel from the sidewalk seeped into their open wounds, filling them with a stinging, burning sensation in their arms and faces. The blood that had spilled onto their bodies had dried into dark patches. The red blood was now oxidized, appearing in brown and black spots on the sides of their face, and thin streaks across their arms. Their bodies were weak. From head to toe, their bones ached and their muscles were worn and sore.
Ash felt like his ribcage was going to shatter like thin glass when he coughed up a mouthful of dirt and smoke. He forced himself up, slowly raising his body so that he could sit up. As soon as he was upright, his head swirled and he felt himself succumb to dizziness. Once it died down, the sensation was quickly swapped for a massive, throbbing headache. He felt like he had been the one who had been shot in the head.
Evelyn's arms shook weakly as she pushed herself up from the concrete. She looked down to see the same blood pattern on her face now stained on the sidewalk. She groaned softly as she sat up. She could already feel the bruises on her knees as she propped them on the ground to sit up. Once she sat up straight, she felt her lower back tighten and her muscles throb in pain. She faced in the opposite direction as Ash.
He looked at the rising sunset, breathing a sigh of relief knowing that it was all over. "It's dawn." he said, still out of breath. He looked out into the empty street. "They're all gone now. Everything's back the way it was."
Evelyn got up to her knees, preparing to stand. Her tone suggested that she was looking at something out of the ordinary. "Ash." she called.
Ash dropped his head and sighed out of annoyance. "What is it now?" he said weakly. Like I need any more surprises right now...
"It's the house." she explained. "It's different, look."
He turned himself around and slowly put his feet on the ground to stand up. He lifted his head to see that they were standing directly in front of 1428 Elm Street. The same house he had lived in temporarily. The same house that Freddy once lived in. It was where it all began.
Evelyn was right, it was different. The house did no longer appeared run-down or abandoned as it did when he first moved in. Instead of chipped paint and dead plants, the house was bright white, and decorated with a rose trellis that was mounted on the right side. The grass was freshly cut and glistening from morning dew.
Ash still looked in awe as Evelyn spoke. "You know, I've lived in this town my whole life, and I've never seen that house look like this before." she said, smiling faintly. "I guess since all that stuff with Freddy never happened, it never got abandoned, or condemned. It looks like every other house on the street now."
"Yeah, it does." he agreed. "Wish it looked like this when I moved in. I was getting pretty sick of having to sleep in someplace that had ghosts and demons crawling around like rats in a storm drain."
Evelyn smiled and laughed softly. As she stood up, she looked down to see Ash attempting to do the same. She responded to his pained grunts by gently grabbing his arm and helping him up to his feet. "Well, now you don't have to anymore."
The sudden shock from standing up made his bones ring. He masked his pain by gritting his teeth. "Thanks." he said.
Evelyn responded by patting his chest before slowly walking towards the door.
The blood-splattered blade dragged across the walkway as Ash paced beside Evelyn. The metal scraping along the concrete was like nails on a chalkboard, screeching through the peaceful silence of the morning.
Ash looked over to see his Oldsmobile parked in the driveway. The dents, cracks, and bloodstains from the night before were also gone. Everything seemed perfectly in place. He had never had that kind of experience before. No matter how many times he thought he had done things right, there was always something that he had ignored.
Evelyn spoke to him as she walked beside him, cutting off his daydream. "It's actually pretty now." she commented. "It's bright, and...there are no bars on the windows."
Ash smiled. "I know." he said as he trudged toward the steps. He couldn't help but think back to all of the times he thought he had gotten rid of whatever evil he had set out to kill, only to have it come back later on in his life. All because of one mistake. One mispronounced word. One demonic entity left live. I'm not leaving anymore loose ends this time. He reached his left hand over to his chainsaw and unlatched it from his wrist, leaving it to drop on the concrete. "Too bad it's not gonna be around much longer."
This made Evelyn stop where she was and turn to face Ash. Her eyebrows scrunched and her expression revealed only confusion. "What do you mean?"
Ash paused to face her. She looked at him like he was a madman. It was a look he was very familiar with seeing in people. "I mean I still have one more thing I got to take care of." His head lowered down as he reached for his keys. Out of the many in his key ring, he pulled out a small silver key and handed it to Evelyn. It was the key to his trunk. When she placed her fingers on it and took it from him, he instructed her. "Do me a favor and go get those cans of gasoline from my trunk."
Her eyes darted from the key to him. "You're gonna burn it down?" she said, confused. "Why?"
He looked at her intensely. "Because, I want to be absolutely sure that I'm doing things right this time. I've been dealing with Deadites and God-knows-what for the past thirty years. And now that I've wiped Freddy Krueger out of existence, I'm done. And I just want to do everything I can to make sure he can't come back."
Evelyn nodded. "Okay." she said. "Whatever you got to do..."
Despite his exhausted appearance, Ash flashed his usual charm. "I right wrongs and change history, baby."
Evelyn had grabbed four gallons of gasoline from Ash's trunk. Before soaking the house with gas, they made sure to evacuate Ash's valuables (in other words, all of his weapons) and place them inside his car. Each carried two and spilled the gasoline at opposite ends of the house.
They made sure to line each corner of every room, spilling fluid on the curtains, bed covers, and other flammable areas. The two lines of gasoline were connected at the front door, leaving a long, thin, trail ending approximately fifteen feet from the steps.
The Delta 88 was parked on the edge of the street. The trunk was now filled with all of his weapons and gear: his chainsaw, his pump shotgun, his 9mm, his holsters and straps, and his trusty Boomsti
ck. He took another look at them all before slamming it shut. Ash and Evelyn tossed the empty gallons aside and stood beside each other, taking one last look before 1428 Elm Street would be reduced nothing but rubble and smoke-stains.
He never broke his gaze from the house when he asked Evelyn, "Got a match?"
Evelyn remembered the box of matches the took from Ash's trunk before loading his gear. "Yeah, here." she answered. "I took them from your car. You know you have an issue of Fangoria in there that's over twenty years old?"
"Mmm hmm." replied Ash. "Maybe now, I'll actually get around to cleaning that thing. Of course, that's about as likely as me sprouting a new hand." He turned to Evelyn. "You ready to sit by the campfire and roast some marshmallows?"
Evelyn turned to him, un-amused by his joke. "Just throw the match."
He never broke eye contact with her when he flicked the lit match from his fingertips. He turned to see it land on the wet ground, igniting a long, bright, trail of fire leading into the house.
The line of fire grew, racing towards the house. As soon as the fire grew inside, it didn't take long until the house started to burn. The curtains and furniture caught fire the quickest, taking only seconds to ignite. The glowing, orange, flames illuminated from outside the windows. Within minutes, the house was engulfed in flames.
Ash and Evelyn watched as, from bottom to top, the entire house was covered in the roaring fire. The flames danced from both inside and outside, making it appear as if the house was moving.
Ash took the Necronomicon from Evelyn's hand and stepped closer towards the burning house. "And now to do what I came here to do." He stepped closer until he was only a few feet from the monstrous fire. The bright flames illuminated under him, giving himself a dark orange glow. He gripped the rotted flesh that served as the book's cover and hurled in into the fire. The Book of the Dead disappeared from view as it flew inside. He stepped back, watching as the house started to collapse.
They both heard the creaks and moans coming from inside as the house began to crumble. First, the roof caved in. The support beams that held the house up were next, snapping in half and falling to the rubble. Soon, the entire structure of the house was reduced to a hill of flames.
"You know, I've been thinking..." said Ash as he stared at the fire. "Since everything's changed now, I bet all your friends are still alive. It's like this whole thing never--" He felt Evelyn wrap her arms around his waist. He looked down to see her hugging him, her head buried in his chest. He decided not to say anything, instead he returned her hug.
Her voice was muffled when she spoke to him. "Thank you."
"You’re welcome." he said softly. "Thanks for sticking through it, and fighting with me."
She squeezed him tightly, strengthening the hug. After lingering for a few seconds, Evelyn broke away from their hug and looked up into his eyes. "I'm just sorry it couldn't do the same for you."
"Thanks for the pep talk there, Sunshine." he said with a smirk.
Evelyn quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."
Ash smiled at her. "I know." He gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder. "You know, I'm not that worried about it anymore. That part of my life's over, and now I can finally move on...go back home."
She took one step back, away from Ash, and offered her hand out for a handshake. She smiled, her eyes glimmered as she looked at him. "Well then, have a safe trip back to Dearborn."
"I will," said Ash. "don't worry about me." He turned away and walked back to his car. The door creaked as he opened and slammed it shut.
Evelyn put her hands on the edge of the car door window, bending down just enough to look at Ash before he started the Delta 88. "I'll miss seeing you around the store."
Ash smirked as he put the key in the ignition. "Oh, I'm sure they'll find some young ‘schmo’ to replace me." he remarked.
Her head nodded in defiance as she smiled widely. "I don't think so." she said adamantly. "You're kind of hard to replace."
He turned his head away from the wheel and looked up at her bloodied face. He could tell by the look in her eye, and the way she shook weakly, that it was taking a lot of her strength just to stand up. "You want a ride home?"
She shook her head. "No, I can walk from here."
"You sure about that?" he said, trying to persuade her otherwise. "It's on the other side of town."
Her voice perked up. "I know. I just want to look around. See what's changed. See what hasn't changed." As an afterthought, she then added. "Plus, I think Cooper might freak out if he saw me all bloodied up and riding with you at 6:00 AM."
"So what are you going to do?" he asked. "Clean yourself up and go back to work."
"I think you'd understand if I called in sick today."
"Yeah, I would." he agreed. He looked at her kind, smiling, face one last time before leaving her. "Well, take care..."
Evelyn poked her head through the open window, and gave Ash a brief kiss on the cheek. She then pulled back and stood up tall, retreating her hands from the door.
With a smile on his face, Ash turned the key and started his Oldsmobile. He broke eye-contact with Evelyn and turned to look at the road. He immediately put his foot on the accelerator and drove away.
Evelyn watched as the distance between them grew longer. A brief gust of wind blew through her black, matted hair as she placed her hand on her other arm, feeling one of her cuts begin to excrete blood again. Once Ash's yellow Oldsmobile faded into the horizon, she turned in the other direction and slowly walked towards the ever-brightening sunrise.
The streets of Springwood were void of people as Ash cruised to survey the town. There were no Deadites. No fires. No destruction. He kept expecting to see the aftermath of the night before in the streets in front of him. He knew that it shouldn't have, but it surprised him not to see bodies of slain demons strewn about. Destructed cars toppled over, with their windows smashed and broken glass sprinkled all around. Black streaks of soot from the fires that were caused. Not even the disintegrated remains of the demons from the destruction of the Necronomicon.
The town was spotless, as much as it was when he first arrived. Just like before, the only dark and bloody element in the town was him. He now entered downtown Springwood. By this time, Ash could see the occasional car drive past him. He looked the wristwatch on his left arm. It was just after 6:30 AM, people were on their way to work. He would take a glimpse into the window on the car that was passing him by. Every time he did, he or she would look at his scarred and bloodied face in fear. As if they'd just seen a ghost, or a murderer who was on the run.
I'm not gonna miss getting those again. he thought. Ash reached into the glove compartment and grabbed a small rag. He used it to wipe the dried blood from his face as he neared the Springwood Police Department. From the distance, he spotted Lt. Moore and Officer Harris shuffling down the steps and heading for their cars. Somebody must've called in about the fire. Ash thought. It had been almost an hour since he had set the house ablaze. Took 'em long enough. As he drove by the police station, he noticed Moore and Harris turn to look at Ash's scratched and dented Oldsmobile. He shrugged it off by barely lifting his hand from the wheel and waving at them. The two policemen simply lifted their hands as a means of waving as they leered at him, confused.
Ash muttered as he drove on. "Everything's back the way it was." Tired of the silence, Ash turned on the radio. At first, he got nothing but static. His eyes darted back and forth from the road to the knob as he adjusted it, finding a clear station. The only working station at the time was one that broadcasted directly from Springwood, and it was on AM talk radio. He listed to the hosts' overly cheerful voices as they droned on about what a great morning it was and read the weather forecast. Why are these people always so cheery all the time? he wondered. I don't want you to shove your perkiness down my throat until I've had at least six cups of coffee in my system. He regretted his decision to turn on the radio and quickly shut it off.
He looked around as he left downtown Springwood. "It's a lot better now, actually." He was now on the street that he usually took to get to work. As he was driving, he wondered aloud. "I deserve a medal for this stuff." He slowed down to about 20 miles per hour as he looked out the window to see Evelyn racing across the S-Mart parking lot.
Her face and arms were no longer bloody. She had two small band aids on her cheek where Freddy had slashed her. She wore a long-sleeve shirt to cover up the gauze that she had wrapped around her arms. Her dark hair waved as she ran across the lot to meet Cooper, who had just gotten out of his El Camino.
Ash saw her mouth open, he assumed she was yelling "Cooper!". He looked at Cooper and saw his head turn in her direction and jog towards her. He only took a few steps before Evelyn crashed into him and wrapped her arms around him. Cooper broke away to talk to her.
As soon as she looked at his face, she broke down into tears, smiling from ear to ear at the same time. She hugged him again, squeezing him tightly. When she opened her eyes, she saw Ash driving by. She kept her smile and waved at him.
He whispered. "Stay safe, kid..." He waved back at her as he drove off. He picked up speed as Evelyn came out of view. Now that his sightseeing was over, was now on the right path to exit town. It brought him joy to think about what lay ahead of him. It was what he always hoped for, but feared would never happen. The Necronomicon was destroyed. There were no more Deadites. Freddy Krueger was dead and gone. And now, he was on the road back home.
For Evelyn...
For all of Springwood...
For Ash...
The nightmare was over.
EPILOGUE
The fire was slowly dying down on top of the blackened remains of 1428 Elm Street. Smoke had filled the air in a swirled pattern, forming a small, dark, cloud above the neighborhood. It could be seen from several blocks away. All that remained of the house was a large hill comprised of burned wood and other debris. Most of the materials were charred, while others were still burning in a small pit of flames.
