𝐈'𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥 ; ᵂᶦˡˡ ᴮʸᵉʳˢ

vi ; E Pluribus Unum

The machine made a loud thrumming noise, the three boys whisper in agreement the Russians were 100% trying to open the gate. Ethan felt a shiver crawl up his spine, causing goosebumps to rise on his neck. The group quickly leaves though, Steve explaining they had seen this before as they walked back down the stairs in a bit of a rush.

"I don't understand, you've seen this before?" Robin asks

"Not exactly" Steve replies

"Then what, exactly?"

"All you need to know is that it's bad" Dustin answers

"Very bad" Ethan adds

"Like end-of-the-human-race-as-we-know-it kind of bad" Dustin quickly speaks

"And you know about this how?" Robin intervenes

"Uhm, Steve? Where's your Russian friend?" Erica asks, looking down at the floor where there should've been an unconscious body

Steve looks down at the puddle of blood next to him as a loud alarm starts to blare. Steve rushes to the door, opening the door to see a man yelling in Russian, coming towards the group. Steve slams the door shut, urgently repeating for the group to run. The only way they could go was to the machine, more Russians looking back at them in confusion as they didn't recognize them.

Dustin subconsciously let his legs lead him down towards the machine, Ethan right behind him with Erica, Robin, and Steve trailing right after them. The Russian guards had busted through the door, quickly locating the American group. Dustin shrieks as he pushes a man out of his way, quickly halting to a stop when they reach what was basically the end of the railed walkway.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!" Dustin screams, gasping for air

Between the split second Ethan had seen the gate and started to stare at it and his inevitable doom, he became frozen. Stiff, unable to move. Steve quickly saw this after he saw the guards, leading the others to move without seeing Ethan's current state. Steve quickly picks Ethan up bridal style, sprinting after the group. Dustin and Robin looked back, seeing the stiff boy in Steve's arms, leading them to shove the guards and push some large tin cans onto them.

Robin leads the group through another door, Steve quickly hands Ethan to Dustin, who could barely hold him yet adrenaline was fueling his muscles. Steve had to hold the door shut from about six guards as the group looks around for an exit. Robin runs over to help Steve, with Erica finding a hatch in the floor they could escape to.

"Come on!" Dustin exclaims

"No, just go!" Steve shouts

"Go, come on, now!"

"No! Just go get some help, okay?"

Dustin pushes Ethan into the hole, letting Erica drag him by the feet with her hands as she pushed with her knees. Dustin stood in the hatch, looking back at Steve with tears in his eyes.

"I won't forget you!"

<•>

"So when we set fire to the hub, we drew the Demodogs away so El could close the gate. But now, for some insane reason, the Russians appear to be trying to reopen it, which just destroys everything we risked our lives for" Dustin explains to Erica

The trio of kids were now in a more open area in the vents, next to a large fan that Dustin was trying to unscrew to turn off. Ethan had still been frozen, his eyes lightly glossed over, laid on the cold floor as Erica and Dustin just thought it was a weird powers thing. But it defintitly wasn't a 'weird powers thing'

It was another vision, like the past November where he thought he was being ridiculed by his best friends. But this was different. He was roaming around the Upside Down once again. He was wearing his own clothes and he looked like himself, this wasn't some lucid dream of being in the lab, this was brand new and happening right now.

He stayed quiet, not wanting to draw the attention of any Demogorgons or the Shadow Monster. Although, the Mind Flayer wasn't there. It's a huge, shadow-y creature that would be clear as day to see against the dark blue sky that struck red lightning. Ethan found this alarming, connecting dots from the events after crashing his bike to this. After a moment of connecting dots and being a bit of a genius, Ethan found the solution.

The Mind Flayer had been trapped in their world, and when El closed the gate it was a no going back situation. Ethan became quickly worried, why was he here, trapped in some weird dream version of the Upside Down? Why was he not able to leave and warn his friends on the surface?

With a quick gasp he awoke, sitting up as Dustin and Erica had already been approaching him, the fan had stopped, meaning they could move forward a bit more. The Henderson boy and Simclair girl don't mention it as Ethan looked panicked and worried, letting him stand up and get control of his body again before he started speaking.

"The Mind Flayer. We trapped it in our world when El closed the gate! It's back, guys"

"You've gotta be kidding with me"

"I'm serious. I think it possessed me as well and that's just super super fun!" Ethan sarcastically exclaims, "So we need to get out of here with Steve and Robin in tow, and warn our friends."

<•>

The trio ended up in another room, those tubes of green lava lamp stuff being held in larger tubes, Dustin spotted what looked like a rough draft of a car brought to life, being amazed by it. Ethan looks around as Erica and Dustin trail off to look at different things, Dustin trying to find a key for the car and Erica looking at weapons.

Dustin finds a key as Erica scares the curly haired boy with one of the lethal weapons the Russians had laying around, blue electricity sparking from the pole. Dustin and Erica converse as Ethan stays put, freaked out by all the green tubes, weapons, etc.

"Hey guys, we should really get going. I have a bad gut feeling and I think I'm gonna puke if I don't follow it"

published ; july 12 2022
edited ; june 27 2024