"Ready?" Jonathan asked, sitting in the drivers seat of the van, the rest of them squished in like before.
Argyle had been left at the cabin to do whatever Argyle does, for reasons including the fact that he was high and also had never been on this sort of adventure before.
"Yes." El nodded, the rest of them agreeing. They were on their way to the gate in Eddie's caravan, fully armored up, even though they were just going to check everything was the same as they'd left it and Vecna wasn't secretly creating an army of skeletons or something creative like that.
"Anyone else nervous..?" Will muttered,
"You shouldn't be, you survived a whole week in the Upside down, alone." Mike assured him.
"It sounds great when you put it like that.." He blushed slightly, "But I guess you're right."
"Let's hope his uncle isn't home... Right?" Nancy said, glancing at Steve, who nodded.
"If he is, do we abort mission?" Lucas question.
"I'm sure he won't be relaxing in an Upside-down infested caravan, bud." Steve smiled, the others sharing a small laugh.
They pulled up, some caravans had been driven away, some were left there, emptied.
After all of them had been freed from the van, they peered into the windows and soon realized it was untouched from the last time they'd exited the gate.
"Lets go, I guess." Dustin said, stepping back so Steve could slam open the door. He did just that, well he tried, rebounding off it and groaning,
"Shit." He scoffed, rolling his eyes.
"Move." Nancy smiled, holding back laughter. She aimed her gun at the lock and shot, the sound ringing in everyone's ears. "You're welcome."
"Thanks Nance." Jonathon placed a hand on her shoulder. They flooded into the caravan and ducked under the police tape, blood spills here and there.
Steve spun around suddenly after glancing over his shoulder,
"Where's Henderson?" He said, face full of panic.
"I'm right here, god, Steve." He said, emerging from the back of the group. Steve rolled his eyes.
"I just wanted to make sure-"
"Yeah, I'm fine though." He made his way beside Steve and they all looked up through the portal.
"Woah." Will gaped,
"That's... Unusual." Jonathon said, craning his neck slightly. Steve leapt up like he'd done the previous time, falling onto the mattress that still remained on the ground. He then threw a rope up towards them and they began to climb through one by one.
They'd all made their way through, El glancing around curiously.
"Wait.. Steve.." Dustin turned pale suddenly.
"What? What's wrong, d'you see something?"
"You don't think.. Eddie.. will still be there, right...?" The room was silent now, small grey particles floating through the air as the group paused. All eyes on Steve.
"Uh... Want me to.. uh, check?" He stuttered, gulping. The group nodded in return.
He inched towards the door mirroring the real worlds caravan, and he shoved it lightly until it opened. He peered out, making sure there was nothing dangerous nearby.
After exiting the caravan, a few others following shortly after, he made his way to Eddies final resting place, scratching his head.
"There's uh, nothing here." He stated, the others coming up behind him.
"Shit, is all of that blood?" Mike asked, sharing nervous glances with Will.
"Do you think the bats took him...?" Nancy asked,
"Nasty creatures, those things." Robin shook her head.
"Should we split up? We'll cover more ground that way." Dustin suggested, others nodding in return.
"Keep your radios on at all times. If you're in danger or if you've found something, call and say 'return to base'. This is base." Steve explained, "Nancy, Lucas, El and Mike, you guys go together. I'll go with Dustin and Robin, Will and Jonathon, you stay here and guard base." They all agreed, knowing it would be better not to argue.
"We'll head to the forests first," Dustin decided,
"Wait! No, the forest, that's the most dangerous spot!" Robin groaned, staring down Steve with pleading eyes.
"Come on, Robin, it won't be like last time. Vecna is hurt, there's no way he'd have enough power to be controlling all of the Upside down right now." Steve convinced her, though he was unconvinced himself.
The group split ways and the trio began their trip towards the forest. 'One foot in front of the other. this'll be over soon.' Thought Robin, her breath hitching ever few steps. The trees around them creaked and cried in the unusual breeze, if you could even call it that. It was a sort of cold wind that froze your nose and stung your cheeks, hurting to breath.
The crew was not dressed for this weather, Steve in a plain white shirt topped with Eddies vest, Robin in a tattered flannel shirt and jeans, Dustin in his usual colorful shirt with a short sleeve underneath.
"How far do we have to... you know, walk?" Robin asked, eyes peering into the cloudy sky, cracks of red silent lightning painting its grey canvas.
"As long as it takes, I guess." Steve said, swinging his hammered nail bat playfully in his hands before resting it over his shoulder.
They walked for just under an hour, Steve dragging the bat in the mud now, so that they could remember the path they took to get back. The weather and light in the sky had only changed slightly, Steve had given up Eddies vest to a shivering Robin, who's flannel shirt wasn't holding in the warmth in the wind.
It was silence, apart from their footsteps. Until they heard it. The sharp hissing, heavy breathing.
"Shit, is anybody else hearing that?" Steve said in a hushed tone, turning to face the others, who were trailing behind.
"Yeah, I do.. Think we should start heading back?" Dustin asked, turning in a full 360 circle at the dead trees and brown bushes that covered the land.
"Head back? I want to know what it is."
"Steve, you can't be serious. Do you hear what it sounds like? It could be another one of those-"
"Shhhh."
"You-"
"SHHH." Steve glared at her, the trio silencing at once. There was a loud crack close by that seemed to echo for miles, after that, the wind began to pick up at a heavy rate.
A couple of bats flew past, screeching loudly as the three of them ran for the cover of the trees.
"There was only a few, right?" Robin asked, her voice high and nervous.
"If you see one, you should probably expect to see the rest." Dustin disappointed her, looking into her worried eyes.
Steve stood, walking in the direction the bats were flying.
"Oh god, Steve you have to be kidding right now!" Robin whisper-shouted,
"Steve, this is insane, we have to run!"
"I have a gut feeling, okay? If you want to go back, then go." He said, turning to Dustin, who looked up into Steve's eyes, placed a hand on his arm and frowned.
"Come on, let's..." He tried to continue, but Steve got out of his grip and continued to walk swiftly towards the bats direction. Dustin rolled his eyes, before following his friend.
"But- But- Ugh, this is crazy." Robin sighed, jogging after them.
AUTHORS NOTE!!
Hi! We're definitely getting closer to what you're here for, I promise <3
YOU ARE READING
Kas the bloody handed. (Eddie Munson, Stranger things)
Mystery / Thriller"You call it madness, but I call it love." . . **Steddie . . After a week of loss and terror, the group attempt to come up with a plan to kill Vecna for good. But who, out of all people, will try and stop them? Guess you'll have to find out.
