The Overcomer, Stranger Things

Hawkins Tunnel System

Gwen's side felt like it was on fire as she ran through the forest. Her feet felt numb as sweat trickled down her back and neck. She had lost track of how long she'd been chasing after Barbara's ball of red hair. No matter how fast she ran, Barb was still ahead of her. Why wasn't she stopping? The girl had so many questions and so few answers. 

"Barb, stop!" Gwen yelled, again. 

The Byers girl let out a relieved sigh when Barb actually listened to her. However, that relief soon turned to panic when Barbara seemed to get swallowed up by the ground. Gwen raced over to where she last saw her which, oddly enough, was in the middle of a pumpkin patch. Gwen furrowed her eyebrows when she saw that all the pumpkins were rotten and covered in slime. 

"Barb, can you hear me?!" Gwen shouted, as she approached the spot where the Holland girl disappeared. 

When Gwen reached the spot she last saw Barbara, her eyes doubled in size. The soil surrounding where the older girl had stood turned an icy blue color. Wasn't dirt supposed to be brown? Gwen hesitantly stepped onto the patch of sludge, only to let out a shriek when it started pulling her down. 

Before she knew it, only the girl's waist was above ground. The sludge was acting as a quicksand of sorts, making Gwen sink into the ground. The 8-year-old desperately dug her fingernails into the ground as she tried to claw her way out, but it was no use. No one heard the girl's screams as she was dragged underground. 

~:~

Gwen woke up with a start, immediately having to turn over and vomit up a black tar-like substance. The 8-year-old breathed heavily as she clambered onto her feet and looked around. The girl seemed to be stuck in a subterranean tunnel. The temperature had to be below freezing. The combination of the blue filter, the spores floating through the air, and the large vines encrusted in the tunnels made Gwen come to a conclusion. She was in the Upside Down, again. But when did the Upside Down get moved underground?

~:~

Joyce Byers was nearly hysterical by the time Hopper arrived at her house. As soon as the man come through the door, she was bombarding him with questions. 

"My baby has been missing for 12 hours, Hop. Twelve hours!" Joyce yelled as she gesticulated wildly, her anxiety skyrocketing. "Do you remember what happened last time she went missing? What if she got trapped again? O-or--"

"I'm worried, too, Joyce. We'll find her. I promise," Jim assured the frantic woman, as he put a hand on her shoulder. 

Joyce exhaled shakily before putting her head in her hands. Where could she have gone? Why was the universe against her having all her children safe and under one roof? What happened to her little girl? Was she okay? The overprotective mother felt like she was losing her mind. 

"I've checked the school, her friends' houses, the skatepark, the library, and Medeval's. Three other officers are looking for her--" Hopper started, only to get cut off by his radio. 

"Hey, Chief, you there?" Powell's voice came through the speaker. 

"Yeah, go ahead" Hopper responded immediately. 

"I think we've found something on the Byers girl," Powell stated. The chief of police looked at Joyce who looked back at him with such hope his heart shattered. 

"Well, get on with it" Hopper retorted, making Powell roll his eyes at the man's grumpiness. 

"We've found small, child-like footprints leading to the pumpkin patch. They stop in the middle of the field."