The Mutants (Stranger Things Fanfic)

63

"Okay what is it that you wanted to show us that older guys and the adults can't see?" Max asked while they walked inside the old Steele Work building. Dustin was carrying a container with holes in the lid tightly against his chest. 

"It's a surprise! I had found him lurking in my trashcan." Dustin said with such excitement in his voice while he place the container on the table. He fumbled to remove the lid from the container, clearly thrilled to show his friends his new discover. Once he ripped the lid off, he tossed it to the side before pushing over towards them. They leaned forward. Their eyes widened. 

"What the hell?" Lucas asked, confused at what they were even looking at. 

It was a lime-green with a yellow underbelly and red spots along the side with two front legs and a tail. It crawled across the container, probably searching for food or something. 

"It sort of like a Pollwog." Dustin told them, "I named him Dart." 

"Dart?" Mike asked. 

"A pollwog?" Max asked. 

"It's another name for a tadpole. A tadpole--" 

"I understand what that is... but what is it doing in your trashcan?" Max questioned him. 

"Probably looking for food. Want to hold him?" Dustin asked while he picked Dart up. Max shook her head that she wasn't interested, but Dustin either didn't listen to her or didn't notice as he placed it into her hands. 

"Ugh! He's slimy!" Max hissed while she handed Dart off to Lucas. 

"Gross! He's like a living booger!" Lucas complained while handing it off to Mike. Mike lifted Dart closer to him while he moved his hand from side to side. 

"What exactly is he?" Mike asked while placing Dart into his container. 

"My question exactly. Hence why I had done a little reading," Dustin told them, "You see I thought he was a pollywog, but most tadpoles are aquatic, right? Well Dart isn't. He doesn't need any water. But then I read about these Terrestrial Pollywogs. There are two species; however, one is from India while the other is from South America. Which means--" 

"How could it get from there to here?" Will spoke up. 

"Perhaps some scientist brought it over to study them and it somehow escape?" Max asked. 

"Do you guys see that?" Mike interrupted them while he pointed directly to Dart's belly, "it looks like there's something inside." 

Mike turned around and headed to the other side of the room, grabbed a lamp and headed back towards them. After plugging everything in, he shined the light over to Dart. Not even a second later, Dart was screeching in pain and proceeded to scurry across the container to get away from the light. Dustin picked up Dart and began cooing it down before turning towards them. 

"That's another thing, reptiles are ectothermic... cold-blooded, right? So normally they love heat and sunlight., yet Dart can't stand the heat... and it hurts him." Dustin told them. 

"Wait? If it's not a pollywog or a reptile--" Lucas started when Dustin cut him off. 

"I have discovered a new species!" Dustin cheered. 

Nancy was sitting on her bed, looking over her books. She had a big test coming up when they return to school and she needed to pass it. She turned the page when--

"Mike!" 

Nancy shot her head up, staring at the back of her door. What the hell, she thought as she could have sworn... but it couldn't be... could it?

"Max!... Will!" 

Okay, now she was sure she didn't misheard that. Nancy slammed her book and tossed it to the side. She slowly slid off her bed then tiptoed to the door. Her heart was racing. Her breathing caught in her throat. It can't be real. It can't be real. It can't be real. Nancy kept repeating inside her head as she reached the door. 

"ANYBODY!" 

With a shaking hand, she reached out to grab the knob. She turned it. The door swung opened. Instead of seeing the hallway outside her door, she saw a pitch black abyss. Her skin crawled while her eyes peered across the darkness. 

"GUYS!" 

From the darkness, El came running from the side. Nancy stood frozen; her bottom dropped to her chest. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It couldn't be. It just couldn't be.

"El?" Nancy found herself calling out to her. El spun around. Her eyes widened. 

"NANCY!" She screamed as she came rushing towards her. 

"EL!" Nancy screamed back. She found herself running towards El. She had reached halfway to meet up with El when--

"NANCE!" 

A pair of arms wrapped around her waist as she found herself tumbling to the ground. Nancy groaned. Pain rushed through her side, making her winced. 

"Nancy? What were you doing?" 

Nancy glanced up to see Karen leaned over her with a look of concern beaming in her eyes while she gently brushed her hair from her face. She glanced back ahead of her. The darkness was replaced with the hallway and El was gone.