The Crawler

Walter groaned in his sleep. He began to become aware to a small voice that whispered in his ear.
“Waler…! Waler, wakey up!”
Walter’s eyes flickered open. “Huh? Who’s there?”
He saw Roy, standing wide-eyed and on tip-toes. Walter’s expression immediately softened and he helped the Prince into his bed.
“What’s troubling you, Roy?”
Roy dangled his feet over the bedside and watched them thump quietly against the bed. Walter sat next to him, hunched so he was eye level with Roy.
“I had a bad dweam.”
“What happened?”
“Dare was this big ugwy monstah-ghost-fing who kept sayin fings about dawkness. Den he showed me yoo Waler.” Roy looked up into Walter’s eyes, tears running openly down his face. “An’ yoo were dying. An’ the monstah kep sayin it was my fault. I twyed to save you Waler, I weally did, but evwyting filled with dawkness; it was so scawy! Buh den I saw sumfin in da dawkness and I weached out ta it. When I weached, dare was light, so I kep weaching until evewyting was white. Den I woke up an wanned ta make sure yoo were awive.”
Roy hugged onto Walter, burying his tear stained face in the ruffles of his nightgown. Walter hugged Roy too, comforting the child. But one fact remained that unsettled Walter.
From what Roy had said, he had seen the Crawler.