17

Hopper looked around the shop for a bit the place completely torn a part. He went to the back of the room to inventory room. He'd been there before when some racoons had gotten in a few years back. There would usually be bags of fertilizer on the shelves. However the entire room was empty.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked looking around before his eyes moved to the ground. There were footprints all over the ground. They were big foot prints too, but from the outline, he could tell it was from a human. He was more concerned than ever. He would need to talk Nysa. Maybe she knows who this monster came in the form of.

Meanwhile, a disoriented man stumbled back into an abandoned storage ware house, his body caked in soil. Ethan didn't remember much only that he felt stronger, more alive than ever. But his body acted on its own. He felt driven by some unknown force. He looked at the long rows of soil before him in perfect oval shapes six feet apart from each other. Why did he do this? He looked down at his dirty bloody hands. He remembered hitting the shop owner. He remembered a bear. Finally his head slowly lifted as he looked up realization. He remembered the girl who betrayed him.

"Find the girl." Someone whispered in his mind while other whispers were echoing in his mind. "Fill the girls… they must give birth. Infect them with your power… the last girl must be the one… put the baby inside her and bring forth the beast."

Ethan's face slowly calmed itself. He was emotionless now. He had to test his new powers. But first, he had to be someone different. He looked down at the ground. He was taller than he used to be standing at six-five. He walked over to the old bathroom that the ware house had facing the dirty mirror. He ran his hand down the grime of the glass. Where did this muscle come from? His arms, chest and stomach all the way down to his legs had taken on muscle.

"Find the girl who betrayed you… fill her with your seed… infect her… infect them… infect them all!"

He knew what he had to do.

Nysa's POV

My mood had suddenly dropped. Maybe it was because of everything that's already happened and what was going to happen. My parents just wanted a simple life, but I guess simple lives don't belong to everyone. Once Billy and I entered the hall, he took hold of my arm grabbing my attention.

"Meet me by the student parking lot. We'll head to the Byers house." he said. I really wished he wouldn't get involved. Looking into that man's eyes when he was human was bad enough, but if he was back as a monster this was something entirely different.

"You don't have to do this Billy. You don't have to do any of it." I replied. He shook his head.

"Yeah I do. If Max and her loser friends fought this thing once and it's coming back to get them, I can't let that happen." he said and I winced before nodding. He let me go and we separated. As I returned I noticed the time. Math would be starting in a moment. I hurried down the hall and made it with a few minutes to spare. Luckily the teacher was not in the class. As I looked for my spot, I saw Nancy immediately waving me over. That's right she's Mike's sister and Johnathon was Will's brother. I could tell already he was worried for her. They knew about me and El. I walked over to them and sat at the desk beside Nancy. Johnathon was on the opposite side of her. He immediately leaned in.

"Did you go and see Will?" he whispered lowly. Both teens were leaned over their desks to face me.

"How is he?" Nancy asked. I leaned over.

"He is okay, but his mind is locked away. The monster, the mind flayer has him locked away." I answered.

"But he's not going to die right?" Johnathon asked. I shook my head.

"We have to do something fast." I replied sighing heavily. "The mind flayer is going to send someone very bad to try and hurt us."

"Who?" Nancy asked. I tried to remember his name.

"Ethan Puzzleman." I replied. Her eyes popped.

"I've heard of him in the paper. He's a serial killer with… herpes. He's around here?" she asked worried and I shook my head.

"He attacked me the other day… with my abilities he was killed, but I think the mind flayer has him and is going to use him to hurt a lot of people." I said. Johnathon looked at Nancy.

"Will could sense the Mind Flayer, that's why he came after him first." he said. Nancy took his hand immediately. I could smell their combined scents. The two were a true mated pair. They had been through quite a lot, I could see it in their eyes. Nancy looked at me.

"Nysa… if you're like El, are you going to help us stop this thing?" she asked. Her tone was fearful and I nodded.

"I'm going to help any way I can." I replied. They both nodded in appreciation but I was still unsure deep down of how I could actually help.

"Billy Hargrove is going to help us. He knows." Was all I said and I could see they looked unsure.

"He knows?" Nancy repeated. I nodded.

"We will need all the help we can get." I told and the two looked at each other before nodding.

Normal POV

The girls face was all Ethan could really see. Why? Why did she betray him, he loved her. He loved her so much. He wandered the forest naked for a time before coming across the back yard of a large house. He could hear laughter in his mind. Children's laughter. He looked up tilting his head to the air. They weren't in his mind. He was close to a neighborhood and he could hear them. He inhaled and could smell a vast amount of smells he could never smell before.

"Alright gang let's hit the road!"

Ethan looked down now and took a few steps toward the house. He noticed a family exiting the front door and moving over to the car in the drive way. A man his size exited first, then three kids, and a woman. Ethan looked up now in interest of her.

A woman. That's what he needed, but he had to wait, he had to be patient. The family carried large bags and sat them in the trunk of the car before getting in and taking off. They were going somewhere and from the multiple bags, they'd be gone for a long time. So he walked up to the house, the back door specifically. There was a sliding screen door of which blinds were hanging down. He raised his hand and attempted to slide the door open, but it wouldn't move. Ethan gave a wince before trying again only this time with his strength he got it open very easily. The locks in the door broke and he just walked right in. His feet were dirty, tracking dirt through the house which he explored thoroughly. The house was very clean he moved upstairs finally looking into the empty rooms he found. First were the children. He imagined them playing happily and innocently. He wanted children before he was betrayed.

He moved further down the white hall until finally coming to the parent's rooms. He stopped at the doorway and just leaned his head in. The room was modern and very stylish.

Can I take off my shoes at least? I don't… want them to get dirty.

Ethan looked down at the white carpeted floor. His toes were dirty but he did not concern himself with it. He finally entered the room and looked around now. The bed was large and slowly he sat down on it, his bottom gently setting into the comforter. This could be their bed, the bed they make love in, the bed they have their children in. That's what he wanted. That's what he wanted with all of them. But her. She is the one, his mind told him. She is the one he was meant to have he was sure of it.

He frowned deeply, his eyes fading red as blood poured down his eye lids. He got up slowly and moved to the closet. He could smell the scents of the man in woman. He walked over to a white blouse and placed the sleeve to his nose and inhaled. Her scent filled his body making his cock stand at attention immediately.

Patience. He turned and looked around at all the men's clothes. They would fit him. He stepped out and moved into the bathroom entering their shower. He cut the water on ignoring the coldness. He used the bar of soap and wash cloth that hung inside on a small hook and began to wash the forest off him. He'd need a new scent, a scent that females would like. He exited the shower after a few minutes of silence and stood in front of the mirror. He saw her face. Beautiful ebony skin, long curly locks like a doll. Eyes as innocent as a doe. He then looked down noticing some shaving equipment. The man of the house must have forgotten it. The family did seem to be leaving in a hurry. He then picked up the clippers and brought it to the top of his head. He cut his long hair low and combed back the rest so it was slick back. He took some of the gel he found and combed it through his hair. He moved back out and into the closet.

He grabbed a white collared shirt and black dress pants and put them on. He then found a belt and slowly took hold of his sliding his hands over it as he held it. A flash of black shot across his mind. He was seeing images in his mind, the belt around her neck pulling tight as she struggled to loosen it. She's choking and coughing up and his hold on the belt tightens. He shook his head of the random memory and exited the closet after putting it through his pants loops. He had a black tie over his shoulder which he stood in front of a vanity mirror and began to tie around his neck.

Every male has that one special female in his life. He would need to attract her and get her attention. But he needed practice, he needed to perfect his mating call.