Jailbird || Stranger Things

fifty-seven ➵ castle rock

"The gate."

    Teresa's head ached. It was dull and less striking after the few seconds of staring at the rip in reality, but it was enough to tell her that they were in so much shit. Upon realising this, she immediately pushed herself away from the window looking into the lab.

    "Reese?"

    "Get out, we gotta go. Right now," she pulled Steve by his hand, grabbing onto Robin's with her other as she tugged them back down the stairs.

    "I don't understand," Robin tried to resist, but Teresa's hold was too strong as she urged the kids ahead. "You've seen this before?"

    "Not exactly," Steve replied, urging Reese to let up her vice like grip.

    "Then what, exactly?" Robin asked, finally free from Reese's hold as she let them go once they made it down to the bottom of the stairs.

    "All you need to know is it's bad," she told the girl, her eyes serious and immediately letting Robin know this wasn't a joking matter. Looking for help, Robin looked to Steve, who nodded in agreement.

    "It's really bad."

    "Like, end-of-the-human-race-as-we-know-it kind of bad," Dustin agreed, turning back to the older clueless teen.

    "And you know about this how?" Robin asked as they stopped in a group, Teresa letting out a string of curses.

    "Um, Steve?" Erica asked. "Where's your Russian friend?"

    An alarm blared into the room, lights flashed as Teresa's whole body flinched at the sound.

    "Shit," Steve rushed to the door, opening it to see the earlier soldier hunched over and being looked at by others with Reese right behind him.

    "Fuck," she breathed, but her instincts immediately kicked in. Next came the Russian yells, no doubt telling them to stop where they were and what they were going. "Go! Run!"

    The kids rushed ahead up the stairs, and then through to the lab. The scientists scrambled out of the way as the soldiers pursued the five kids onto the platform by the machine, Steve pushing one of the suited men away.

    As they reached the end, at the mouth of the machine that was pushing a stream of light towards the gate, Teresa stilled. Her mind became overwhelmed by echoes, of screams and something that sounded like the squelching of flesh. Blood, moisture. Her eyes, instead of seeing the long gash in the wall, suddenly watched as a monster of flesh and bone arranged in unnatural ways stood upright, its mouth opening to reveal jagged broken bones as teeth.

    "Holy shit!"

    In a second, it dissolved, melting into a puddle before she saw Billy in the fog beside Heather, staring as a horde of people walked ahead, stumbling and turning into the same human goo before it all formed into the same monster.

    "Shit."

    "Holy shit!"

    "Guards! Go!"

    "Reese! This way!" Steve rugged her by the hand, the events apparently only she had seen disappearing into the white light as he yanked her along the metal walkway, Dustin screaming as he pushed another suited scientist aside.

    Robin rushed ahead, pushing a door open as Teresa finally returned to the present and helped to usher the others along, shoving some barrels in the way of the still yelling Russians.

    "Come on! Go go go!!"

    "Come on!" Steve shouted to her, making her flash a small grin at the soldiers in their mess while she continued on. Noticing the room Steve waved them towards, Teresa pulled her way out of her backpack, immediately throwing her back against the door.