Dustin walked ahead of them, every now and then he would adjust his direction according to the compass needle. Nat walked with Robin, the ground crunched as they walked. Everyone had spread out slightly, Max and Lucas were walking off to the left. Eddie was ahead with Dustin, Nancy and Steve wandered in the middle.
"Are you okay?" Robin asked after a long period of silence.
"Hm? Oh- Yeah, of course." She said, "Well, you know, as okay as I can be with ancient spell-casters roaming around cursing random people." She chuckled. She looked to her left where Lucas and Max were walking. Nat noticed she had a Walkman attached to her side.
"You managed to save her?" Nat said, nodding towards Max. Robin smiled half-heartedly.
"Kind of." She said, "I wasn't there, but it's music. The music snapped her out of it. I mean, she's always wearing it now, the Walkman, but she has to, in case he comes back."
"Jesus." Nat muttered.
"That's how we know where he is." Robin explained. "When Max was in the trance, Vecna had her inside the old Creel house."
"Wait- Victor Creel?" She asked. "The guy who killed his wife and kids?"
"Uh-huh, Nancy got us in to see him, he's convinced that the house was cursed, that something killed them." Robin explained, looking back over to Max. "The crazy thing is, he's telling the truth. The way his family were killed is exactly the same as what happened to Chrissy and Patrick."
"Shit."
"How's Eddie?" Robin asked.
"Fine, I think." She was looking at the back of his head as he walked with Dustin. "He's seen two people die that way. First, Chrissy, then Patrick. I mean, I don't know what I'd have done without him there, you know? If I'd even got out of the water I'd have been scrabbling around in the woods for hours."
"It's good you have each other." Robin noted. "I mean, I knew you guys were friends but-" She stopped herself.
"But what?" Nat asked, slightly confused. When Robin didn't answer, Nat grabbed onto her arm. "What?"
"Well, I mean-" She chuckled, "Have you seen the way he looks at you?"
"You mean like a normal person looks at someone." She said, questionably.
"Pfft-" Robin scoffed. "No, like he's in a boat in a storm… and you're his lighthouse."
A pain panged in Nat's stomach. "Don't be stupid. He doesn't look at me like that."
Nat was watching Eddie so closely now, her stomach jumbling. Robin was just messing with her. "And right now you're looking at him like he's the only thing keeping you standing." Robin said, causing Nat's head to snap to her. "You guys need each other, you're just too dumb to see it."
"Sure…" Nat said, "Eddie doesn't need anybody, least of all me."
Yet she smiled a little at the thought that he did, and when he glanced over his shoulder to check she was still behind them, it felt like a thousand butterflies were alive in her stomach.
As they walked, the sun slowly began to set, casting the ground in hues of red and orange. Dustin was walking like a man on a mission, never slowing, never stopping. Eddie had fallen into step beside her not too long ago, hands in his pockets.
"What do you think this 'gate' will look like?" She asked him, nonchalantly. She'd been picturing it in many ways, a shimmering mist, a dark gaping cavern, just simply a door.
Eddie shrugged, "Well I doubt it's going to look nice and inviting, if that's what you're asking."
"Oh yeah-" She muttered, "I mean I was picturing rainbows and unicorns, anything less and I'll be disappointed." He laughed at her.
"There could be unicorns," He said, "But they'll probably have fangs and blood red eyes. Oh, and those rainbows will be accompanied by acid rain."
"Is nothing sacred?" She muttered, throwing her hands up in mock defeat.
He smirked, "Apparently not." His look changed to seriousness, "You know, when we get to this gate, we don't have to do anything, we can call it quits right then and there…"
Nat glanced over to him as she stepped over a particularly large tree root. "I know," She said. "Besides, now I'm officially a missing person, it'll make it much easier to run away with you." She nudged him with her elbow, he smiled in response.
"I was hoping you'd say that."
"Dustin!" Steve was yelling from upfront, the forest had gotten so much darker. "Slow down, man!"
Eddie stepped forward quickly, "He's gonna end up hurting himself." He muttered, taking off after him. "Dustin? Can you slow down? Dustin!"
Nat sped up after them, brushing branches out of her path, Dustin's pace had quickened despite their warnings to take it easy. "I think we're getting close!" He called, Eddie just managed to grab hold of Dustin's jacket before he went splashing into the lake.
They all gathered behind Dustin and Eddie, flashlights pointing out into the gloom. "You've gotta be shitting me."
Nat was staring out into the water which was lapping gently at the shore. She turned to her right, in the distance she could see lights from several houses dotted around the perimeter of the lake.
"I thought these woods were familiar." Eddie muttered. They were back at Lovers Lake.
"This is confounding," Said Dustin, bashing the compass against his hand.
One of the lights in the distance would be the boathouse, Nat thought. She had her hand clenched, nails digging into her palm.
"There's a gate in Lover's Lake?" Max asked.
"Whenever the Demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening." Nancy said. "Maybe Vecna's the same way."
"Well there's only one way to find out." Steve said, as he disappeared along the edge of the lake.
"Steve!" Nancy said, turning to follow him, "Wait up."
It took all of five minutes for them to commandeer a small boat from the edge of the lake. Steve had dragged it back to them, Nancy following behind. It certainly wasn't big enough for all of them to fit. Robin was the first into the boat, grabbing hold of the hand that Steve had outstretched for balance.
Eddie turned to look at Nat, "Just say the word." Gripping her fists tighter, Nat took a steadying look around her then climbed into the boat, Eddie following after her. Nancy jumped in next, only one more would fit, but it would be a squeeze. Dustin made to move forwards, but Eddie stopped him.
"Hey, hey, woah are you trying to sink us? This thing holds four people, tops okay?" Dustin looked hurt but remained on the shore.
"It's better this way," Nancy added, "You guys stay here with Max. Look after her, keep an eye out for trouble."
"You keep an eye out!" Dustin said, annoyance flaring. It was his theory, he wanted to find this gate. "It's my theory!"
"You heard Nance." Robin said.
"Who put her in charge?" Dustin was pointing at Nancy now.
"She did," Nat said, pointing to Robin.
"Yeah, I did." Robin agreed.
Nancy stretched out her hand to him. "Compass." She said, waggling her fingers. Dustin handed the compass over reluctantly. Steve turned to Dustin and chucked his bag at him, he caught it, but barely.
"There you go," Steve said, pushing the boat out into the water and clambering in as he did so. Dustin gaped at him. "Hey! You said it held four!"
"Sorry," Steve whispered as Robin shouted for them to be in bed by nine.
"You're so getting your ass kicked when we get back Steve." Nat muttered.
"I couldn't let you guys keep having all the fun." He said.
Nat watched as the figures of Max, Dustin and Lucas began to fade and slowly disappear the further and further they went out onto the lake. Robin and Eddie had taken up rowing the boat, guiding them closer and closer to this gate. Nancy was watching the compass like a hawk, telling them which way to steer, when to adjust their trajectory, when to slow and finally stop.
If the compass had been going nuts before, it had now completely gone crazy. Nancy held it out into the middle of the boat, the light from Steve's torch illuminating it for them all to see.
"Woah." He muttered.
The walkie at Eddie's side crackled into life. "Guys, what's going on?" Robin picked it up.
"Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capital ahh."
Nat was leaning over the side of the boat, eyes peering into the inky depths of the water below. She wondered briefly how deep it was below them, whether something could be lurking below, watching them, waiting. A thud made her turn, Steve was taking off his shoes and socks.
"Steve, what are you doing?" Nancy asked.
"Someone's gotta go down there and check this thing out." He said, stuffing the socks into his shoes. "Unless one of you guys can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain… and a certified lifeguard for three years, then. It's gotta be me. No complaints, all right?"
"Hey, no complaints from me." Eddie said. "I do not wanna go down there."
Nat looked from Eddie, to Nancy then Robin and finally Steve. "Are you out of your tiny mind?" She said, "You have no idea what's down there."
He was already clambering up onto the side of the boat. "Exactly," He said, "That's what I'm going to find out." Eddie was wrapping Steve's torch in a plastic bag.
"Let the guy be a hero, Nat." He said, "It's not for us."
Steve pulled his shirt up over his head, Nancy was staring so blatantly at the muscles in his back that, had Nat not still been processing his decision to dive into a possibly deadly lake, she could have laughed. Eddie handed the bagged torch to Steve. "Good luck, man."
Steve nodded to Eddie, "Thanks." Steve was taking long, deep breaths, preparing to plunge.
"Steve," Nancy said, causing him to turn. "Be careful."
He nodded and then he jumped.
The boat rocked from the movement. Nat leant over quickly, peering back into the depths, the water rippling from where Steve had disappeared. Silence fell over them. Nat could hear her heart beating in her ears. Robin let out a shuddering sigh.
"Where are we at, Wheeler?" Nancy was peering down at her watch.
"Closing in on a minute."
"Did he actually mention how long he could hold his breath for?" Nat asked, still straining to see anything in the water. She glanced to her right to see Eddie shaking his head. They waited… and waited. The water rippled briefly before Steve emerged in a gush so loud that they all jumped. He flung his arms over the side of the boat, breathing deeply.
"Christ!" Eddie cursed, his hand over his chest.
"I found it." Steve said.
"You found it?" Nancy said hopefully.
"I found it. Yeah. I found it."
Robin was already shouting into the walkie. "Dustin, you're a goddamn Einstein, he found it!"
"Now what?" Nat asked eagerly. She assumed they would go back and get the others, before deciding who was going to go into this gate to kill Vecna.
"Well, it's pretty wild. It's more of a snack sized gate than a mama gate, but it's still pretty damn big-"
Steve jolted, his head dipping below the side of the boat momentarily. Hands gripping to the sides. They clamoured to help him, the boat rocking, but he pulled himself back up, looking back into the water confused. Then in an instant he was gone.
"STEVE!"
Nat had scrambled back from the side. "What the shit?"
"Steve!" Nancy had her hands in the water, desperately searching for him. "Steve!"
She stood upright, hands bracing on the side of the boat. Eddie leaned forward as if to grab her. "No! No! Wheeler don't!"
"Stay here!" She said firmly, leaping over the edge.
"Nancy!" Robin yelled.
"What the hell happened?" Nat cried, bracing herself on the edge of the boat. "Jesus!" Robin was sitting on the edge of the boat now, taking steadying breaths. "Robin don't you dare!"
"No, no, no, no, no!" Eddie was saying, hands held up to her. "She said stay here!"
"Yeah, I heard her." Robin said, smirking.
"She's in charge!" Nat was nodding her head furiously at Eddie's words, eye's pleading with Robin.
"Are you kidding?" She laughed, looking over the edge of the boat. "I made that shit up." She leant back, tumbling over the edge.
"Robin! Jesus, what the shit, Christ!-Gah!" Nat had scrambled to the other side of the boat watching the ripples from where Robin had dived.
"Jesus H Christ!" Eddie was on his feet, hands in his hair.
Nat felt a hot fear bubbling in her stomach, she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Letting out a yell of frustration she slammed her hands on the side of the boat and stood, turning to Eddie. "If we survive this, I give you permission to kill me."
"Nat- No, wait!" She'd already stepped up onto the side, taking a deep breath as she pushed herself forwards. The all too familiar feeling of ice in her veins rose to meet her as she dove.
Once submerged, Nat opened her eyes, the water burning them briefly. The water was dark, but she pushed downwards, hoping she was following the direction that Robin had vanished in. Then, like in her dream, a dim red light was rising to meet her. She surged forwards, barely catching the sight of a pair of legs disappearing through the large fissure in the ground. She swam deeper, trying not to think of what awaited her on the other side, if she even made it to another side, and whether Steve, Nancy and Robin would be waiting for her there. She reached out a hand, the water around the fissure was warm, she felt it melting away the ice cold of Lover's Lake. She pushed forwards, feeling the gate enveloping her arm, it felt like she was pushing through glue. Without a moment to hesitate, she closed her eyes and plunged.
The air hit her face like a hot blast. Opening her eyes, Nat flung her arms up onto the surface, clawing at the vines that snaked their way over every surface. She pulled, climbing upwards out of the gate. It was dark save for the lingering redness that seemed to consume the clouds. Thunder cracked as Nat spun on the spot. Then there was the screeching, the horrid, mindless screeching.
"Steve!" Nat turned, seeing Nancy and Robin, running ahead of her. She looked back behind her at the gate, still pulsing, then took off at a run. There were vines everywhere. Hundreds of them. She jumped over them, trying to avoid them as much as possible. Ahead of her, ahead of Nancy and Robin, she saw Steve.
He was on the ground, surrounded by monstrous looking bats, black as night. Nancy had stooped to pick up an oar off the ground. Nat's heart was beating so wildly she could feel it in every inch of her body. Nat heard the thwack as the first bat creature met the end of the oar Nancy had swung in its direction. It hit the floor, whining, barely stunned as it flapped into the air.
Nat yelled, as she arrived next to Steve, aiming a quick but hard kick at the bat that was currently feasting on his stomach. It released him, turning to face her, its wings bent forward as it snarled, baring massive blood stained fangs. It launched and Nat ducked, bracing for the impact.
A large crack echoed through the night. Nat glanced up to see the creature tumbling across the sickening landscape. She turned.
"Sorry I'm late, sweetheart." Eddie turned just in time to hit another bat away with his oar. Nancy was currently beating the bat which had wrapped its tail around Steve's throat, choking him. Nat glanced around, there were more bats circling above them now, crying out wildly as they swooped and dived. Nat spotted a large piece of timber amongst the vines, she ran to grab it, turning, teeth bared, ready to fight.
She swung wildly as they swooped down at them, connecting sometimes, missing others. Steve had broken free from his assailant, Robin was currently beating one of the creatures which had attached itself to Nancy's back and Eddie… Eddie was cursing like a man possessed, his eyes were wild as he swung, taking down creature after creature. "Come on, come on you son of a bitch!"
The creatures continued to circle and cry far above them. Nat turned to see Steve rip one of them in two. He spat blood onto the ground and kicked at the severed corpse. Nat was breathing heavily, looking up at the sky. The creatures had flown up so high she could barely make them out among the thundering clouds.
"Steve!" Robin said, concern lacing her voice. Nancy was by his side in a heartbeat, looking over the bites that covered his torso.
Nat took a step forward, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She looked up at Eddie who's eyes were darting all over her. "Jesus Christ…" He muttered, "Are you alright?" She nodded.
"You should be asking Steve that."
"Jesus H Christ!" He turned from her and slammed his splintered oar into the ground. He turned back, his eyes blazing. "Why? God, Nat." He reached his hand out and then clenched it into a fist, knocking it against his head.
"You know," She said, "I was really looking forward to blood thirsty unicorns." He pulled a face at her, shaking his head.
"Um- Guys?" Robin was crouched on the floor, observing the mutilated corpse of one of the bats. "Do you think these bats have, like, rabies?"
There was an odd glittering dust, floating above the creature, Robin was looking at it panicked. "What?" Steve asked, holding a hand to his stomach.
"It's just that rabies are, like, my number one greatest fear." She was rambling now. "I think we should get you to a doctor like real soon, because once the symptoms set in you're already dead."
"Robin!" Nat said, stepping close to her. "I think rabies are the least of our problems right now." As if on cue, the wicked screeching of the creatures began again and the clouds lit blood red, their putrid forms cast against them. The flapping of their wings grew louder as they approached, circling, circling, until they landed at the mouth of the gate.
"All right." Steve said, breathlessly. "There's not that many, we can take them. Right?"
Another thunder crack and what looked to be an endless black cloud appeared menacingly before them. Wings beating like a vicious orchestra.
"You had to say it didn't you." Nat muttered.
"The woods," Nancy said, turning on her heel. "Come on!"
Nat took one last glance at the gate, then the cloud of creatures heading towards them and took off at a run.
The vines thickened as they reached the edge of the woods. Nat dodged them as much as she could, the last thing she needed right now was to trip and fall. She dared not look back at the creatures that continued their pursuit of them. The trees provided some cover as they ran, the cries and wails of the bats becoming quieter as the forest overwhelmed them. Nat was breathing hard by the time they reached Skull Rock.
They crouched underneath it, the cries of the bats growing quieter as they continued their chase, hopefully miles and miles away from them. Robin was the first to venture from under their shelter.
"Oh- Okay. That was close." She gasped.
"No shit." Nat said, rising from her crouch and moving from under the rock. Her eyes glanced up at the sky. She could barely hear the bats over the rumbles of thunder that shook the sky. There was a thud behind her, she turned, Steve had stumbled into the rock, barely managing to hold himself upright. His torso was still dripping with blood.
"Steve, Jesus." Nancy said, rushing to help him.
"I'm fine. I'm fine." He replied, accepting her help anyway.
"No, no, no you're not." She argued. "You're losing too much blood."
"We need to get you out of here." Nat said as Nancy forced him to sit.
"He's going nowhere without stopping that bleeding." Eddie noted from beside her. Robin had crouched next to Steve now, expertly tearing a strip of fabric from her shirt.
"So here's the good news." She said as she ripped. "I'm pretty sure wooziness is not a common symptom of rabies. But if you start having hallucinations or muscle spasms or if you start feeling aggressive like you wanna punch me, let me know."
"Robin," Steve grimaced. "I kind of wanna punch you."
Nat sniggered despite the circumstances. "Still got his sense of humour." She said to Eddie.
Robin handed the fabric over to Nancy who motioned for Steve to stand so she could wrap it around him. Steve groaned in pain as she did, but she needed to make sure it was tight enough to stop the bleeding. Nat had turned away as Nancy tightened the bandages. Something about watching Nancy tend to Steve felt strangely invasive, like she was witnessing an intimate exchange.
"Can I kill you now?" Eddie said, standing beside her.
"I think you should wait till we get out of here, don't you?" She replied, glancing over to him. "There's probably more creative ways to do it back home."
"Opposed to being eaten by bats?" He countered.
"You'd feed me to the bats?" She asked, frowning.
"I could have left you to be eaten by the bats." He said, holding his chin contemplatively.
"But you didn't."
"Mm-hmm" He smiled at her. "That was still really stupid."
"I know." She shrugged, "Let's chalk it up to minimal sleep and a moment of madness?"
Eddie nodded as thunder cracked in the distance, he moved forward, climbing up onto a rock. "So-uh- this place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?"
"Pretty much." Nancy said, helping Steve to stand. He was about to step forwards but Nancy stopped him. "Wait- watch out for the vines. It's all a hive mind."
"It's all a what?" Out the corner of her eye, Nat was sure she saw something move.
"All the creepy crawlies around here. They're like one, or something." Steve added. "You step on a vine, you're stepping on a bat, you're stepping on Vecna."
"Great." Nat muttered, stepping back slightly from a vine she felt she was way too close to. Eddie clambered down off the rock carefully, muttering to himself. "So how do we get out of here? We can't go back through where we came."
"Wait," Robin said. "Everything here is the same, right. Except the people, everything is still here?"
"As far as I understand it," Nancy said.
"So theoretically, we could go to the police station, get guns… grenades and whatever else we need to blow up those bat things that are guarding the gate." Nat was looking hopefully at Robin as she spoke, that was a good plan.
"I highly doubt that Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin." Steve sighed, "But guns, yeah."
"We don't have to go all the way downtown for guns." Nancy said. "I have guns in my bedroom."
"You," Eddie said, curiously. "Nancy Wheeler, have guns, plural, in your bedroom?"
"Well that's the most shocking revelation to come out of today." Nat added.
"Full of surprises isn't she?" Robin laughed. Nancy scowled at her.
"A Russian Makarov and a revolver." She said matter-of-factly.
"Yeah, you almost shot me with that one." Steve muttered, standing next to her.
"You almost deserved it," She retorted, smiling at him. Nat pretended to retch as Eddie shrugged off his denim jacket and threw it at Steve.
"For your modesty, dude."
Nat stumbled as the ground cracked, dropping to her knees, hands pressing into the dirt. The world sounded as if a thousand rock slides were happening around them. Nancy had fallen into Steve, who was holding them up against Skull Rock. Eddie had grabbed Robin who had collapsed into him. Nat looked up as the trembling subsided. In the distance a creature bayed for blood, a menagerie of others joining its call.
"Yeah, so guns seem like a pretty good idea to me." Eddie said, standing. Nat pushed herself up from the floor.
"That and getting the fuck out of here." Nat said, wiping her hands on her jeans.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Steve flicked on his flashlight and marched forwards. The others followed suit, trekking back through the woods.
The Wheeler house was several miles away. In the darkness it seemed to take them forever to reach it. None of them spoke, but they all looked about at the slightest snap of a branch or cry of a creature. Nat was watching the floor, stepping carefully over the vines that wound their way along the forest floor. She could have punched the air with joy when they reached the house.
Nancy was the first to the door, pushing it open, everything was so eerily quiet. Even inside the house, vines covered every surface. Nat, last through the door, closed it behind her with a soft click.
"Might be time to get a maid, Wheeler." Robin joked.
"Come on," Nancy said, "I don't want to stay here longer than we have to."
They climbed the stairs one at a time, taking extra care not to touch the vines that wound up them and into the handrails. Nancy's bedroom was at the end of the hall, the door was slightly ajar. Nancy made her way to the closet, throwing it open. She pushed back several boxes on the top shelf till she pulled out an old shoe box. Laying it on the desk, she opened it, hesitated and pulled back the yellow wrapping… shoes, just a pair of lilac heels.
"Those aren't guns." Eddie said sarcastically as Nat smacked him on the arm.
"Those heels are a bit pointy but I was kind of hoping for a deadly projectile." Robin added.
"I don't understand." Nancy muttered.
"Maybe you left them somewhere else?" Eddie suggested.
"There's a six year old in the house." Nancy said. "I know where I keep my guns… And also, I threw these away years ago."
Nat had turned from the table, she walked from it to the bookcase, then to the drawers on the opposite side of the room. She was about to turn back when her eyes fell on the calendar in front of her. November 1983.
"This is old wallpaper." Nancy said, slamming something down on the desk.
"Like 1983 old wallpaper?" Nat asked, turning back to them. Nancy was now circling the room.
"This mirror went to a yard sale. And you," She picked up a battered stuffed dog from the bed. "I gave you to cousin Joanna two years ago."
Her eyes fell on the calendar where Nat was standing, she crossed the room to her nightstand and flicked open a diary. Rifling through the pages, she stopped, her mouth wide open.
"What is it?" Eddie asked.
"Nancy, you're freaking me out." Robin said.
"I- I think the reason that my guns aren't here…" Nancy stuttered. "Is because they don't exist yet. This diary should be full of entries. It's not. The last entry is November sixth, 1983. The day Will went missing. The day the first gate opened." She shook her head, trying to come to terms with what this meant. "We're in the past."
Nat looked back at the calendar, the date sticking out boldly on the page. 1983, the year she had her accident. The year that these strange things started happening in Hawkins, and according to Nancy, the year all of this began.
"Dustin!" Steve's shout echoed somewhere from below. "Dustin!" Nat turned on her heel, following Nancy out of the bedroom. She took the stairs two at a time. Steve was standing in the kitchen, flashlight flailing. "Dustin! Can you hear me? Dustin! Hello! Hel-Hello!?"
"He's lost it." Nat muttered.
"Maybe he really does have rabies." Robin said.
"Again with the rabies."
"Steve, what are you doing?" Nancy asked, causing him to turn.
"He's here!" Steve said, pointing the flashlight so it nearly blinded them. "Henderson. That little shit, he's here. He's like… He's in the walls or something. Just listen."
"In the walls, Steve? Really?" Nat said, flailing her arms.
"Shh," Eddie said, "Listen."
Nat strained her ears, falling silent. There was nothing, she was just about to open her mouth when a dull noise echoed from the corner of the room. It grew louder and closer, Nat shuddered as it passed her ear like a fly buzzing.
How and why is there a gate at Lover's Lake? It was him.
"Shit," Nat whispered. "Dustin!" She called, looking around. "Dustin?" They split up, pacing through the house, calling him. Dustin's voice was fading in and out.
"Alright, either this kid can't hear us or he is being a total douchebag." Steve said.
"Will found a way." Said Nancy, looking at Steve. "Will. He found a way to speak to Joyce through the lights!" She flicked a switch on a nearby lamp. Nothing.
"Try the lights." She said, Nat clicked a switch on the wall to her right, still nothing. A faint clicking filled the room, Steve turned, roaming his flashlight along the walls, along every light in the room.
"Guys." He said, the light resting on the light above the dining table. In the torchlight, small glimmers, almost glitter-like, were dancing between the shades.
"Is that glowing?" Nat asked, stepping closer to the table. Nancy joined her, reaching upward, her hand running through the glimmer. The lights started to glow.
"Woah," Eddie said, coming to Nat's side as she reached her hand up to mimic Nancy. Her hand made contact with the particles, a warm buzz running through her fingertips. She gasped and let out a small laugh.
"This is so weird." One by one they raised their hands to it.
"It kind of feels good." Robin said. Nat watched as Eddie's hand made contact, he smiled widely, looking over at her. A heat rose in her stomach as she smiled back.
"Does anyone know Morse code?" Nancy asked, Nat dropped her hand from the shimmer, shaking her head.
"Wait, does SOS count?" Eddie asked, looking at her. "Is that- Is that good?"
"That'll work." She said.
Eddie rose his hand again, slightly more tentatively this time. The lights began to glow. He mimicked the code with his hand, tapping the glimmer for each letter. Dot, dot, dot. Dash, dash, dash. Dot, dot, dot. The lights pulsed in time with his movements. Dot, dot, dot. Dash, dash, dash. Dot, dot, dot.
The voice was muffled, but it grew louder.
What did you guys do? Ugh- We need lights, man. Lucas- we need lights.
Holly's got that weird tv thing? Was that Erica?
Nancy gasped, "Of course."
Guy's if you can hear us. Meet us in Nancy's room!
Eddie clenched his fists in celebration. "I can't believe that worked, man." Nat smiled broadly at him.
"Let's go," Nancy said, they all clambered back up the stairs towards Nancy's room. They all gathered at the foot of the bed. Nat could hear a muffled scrambling coming from far away.
Then an echo.
Okay, are you guys seeing this?
Sure enough, a small space above Nancy's bed began to glimmer like the lights downstairs. Nancy pushed her hand into it, illuminating every speck she touched.
Holy shit! A laugh echoed across the plane towards them. Uh- we're not moving it, but we're gonna unplug it, standby!
The glimmer vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Nat was kneeling next to Eddie now, so close their arms were touching.
Okay, try it now!
Nancy hesitated, but pushed her hand back to the space where the glimmer hand once been. Sure enough, as soon as her finger touched the space, specks began to glitter in her wake. She traced her hand down, then across, then down again, then a space and one more line. Hi.
Hi! That worked!
"Oh my god, yes!" Eddie grabbed onto Nancy's shoulders, shaking her extatically. This was going to work. "Hi!" He shouted into the glimmer as if Dustin would hear him.
Nancy pushed her hand forward again, tracing letters into the glimmer.
S…T…U… Stupid?... C…K… Stuck!
They're stuck in the upside down!
Nat was clutching her hands together in celebration, she couldn't help the grin that came to her face.
You can't get back through Watergate?
"What's Watergate?" Steve asked.
"Our gate, you know, because it's in water… and it's a gate." Robin replied, rolling her eyes.
"That's cute." Eddie said.
Nancy continued on, muttering to herself as she wrote.
G…U…A…R…Guar…D…E…D… Guarded. Right okay, Watergate is guarded.
That's it guys, that's it. You've got it, Nat thought.
Guys I think we have a theory that could help with that.
"Genius child…" Robin sighed, closing her eyes.
We think that Watergate isn't the only gate. We think that there's a gate at every murder site.
"What?" Nat asked, confused.
"Does anybody know what he's talking about?" Robin asked, they all shook their heads in unison. Nancy simply scribbled a question mark into the shimmer.
Okay, seriously! An annoyance had come over Dustin's voice. How many times do I have to be right on the money before you trust me?
"Jesus Christ, this kids gotta get his ego in check." Steve said in disbelief.
"It's his tone right?" Eddie concurred.
Nancy was shaking her head at them both. "Okay- so how far is your trailer?" She asked Eddie.
"Seven miles."
"That's one hell of a walk with all those bats flying around." Nat said.
"Hey, Nancy." Said Robin, "I know your house here is, like, weirdly, creepily, frozen in time and shit. But haven't you guys always had bikes?"
Nancy smiled, nodding. She pressed her hand back into the glimmer. Trailer.
It was true, in this weird, 1983 version of Hawkins, the Wheeler's still did have a garage full of bikes. They climbed onto them, Nat turning to Eddie. "Bet you I can beat you there."
"Not funny," He smiled, pushing down onto the pedals as they rode off.
They were lucky, throughout the cracking and rumbling of thunder, they didn't see any sign of the creatures that had attacked them earlier. Nat was glad, she didn't fancy fighting off an army of bats today. They screeched into the trailer park, braking quickly when they reached Eddie's trailer. Dropping their bikes onto the ground they made their way to the door, Eddie opened it quickly, glancing around inside.
"That's gotta be a world record." Said Robin, climbing up the steps behind Nat. "Most miles travelled interdimensionally."
"Remind me to call Guinness next time we're here so we can get a certificate." Nat smirked.
The trailer would have been pitch black in normal circumstances, but Nat's eyes went straight to the bright red glow of the gate that was thrumming on the ceiling of Eddie's trailer.
She looked at him, he swallowed hard, eyes wide. "This is where Chrissy died." He said, "Like, right where she died."
Nat tried not to picture Chrissy pressed into the ceiling, bones broken and snapped, face contorted in agony. She didn't deserve this, and Eddie didn't deserve this torture he had been left with. The gate pulsed, a large red globule moving forwards.
"I think there's something in there." Robin said, taking a step back. It pulsed again, growing in size.
"What the hell is that?" Eddie said. Nat went to take a small, inquisitive step forward, surely they could just climb through it like the last one. It burst with a bang, spewing gate guts all over the trailer. They yelped collectively and jumped back. Something was bashing its way through the gate, it looked strangely like the end of a broom.
When the squelching stopped, they moved forwards, tentatively, as one looking up into the crevice that was open before them.
Nat smiled broadly, a laugh escaping her. "Boom!" Dustin yelled, laughing hysterically.
"Aren't we glad to see you guys!" She yelled. It was like they were in a fun house, in a strange room that meant it looked like the others were standing on the ceiling, in some weird twist of gravity. It was by far the trippiest thing she had ever seen.
Dustin had bundled in his hand a large sheet. They stepped back as he threw it, it came towards them, then fell from the ceiling.
"If my theory is correct," He said, letting go of his side. It hung there, still save for a small swish from the breeze.
"I'll get the mattress." Steve said, disappearing to the back of the trailer and returning with Eddies' mattress, Max and Dustin had done the same on the other side.
Nat looked up at it, frowning. "Those stains are-uh- I don't know what those stains are." Eddie muttered, looking from Nat down to the floor.
"Uh-huh-" She didn't believe a word of it.
"Pull on it!" Dustin yelled from below them, "See if it holds."
Robin tugged, it did. "Guess I'm the Guinea Pig," She said, climbing up onto it. Robin moved upwards, head moving through the gate, she let out a gasp as her centre of gravity changed, flipping her over onto the awaiting mattress, her laugh bubbled up from above them.
Nat was smiling at the others, Eddie took a step forward, "All right, I guess I'll go." He clambered up, much quicker than Robin had, but falling much less gracefully on the other side than she did.
"Holy shit! He said as he landed, "That was fun. C'mon Nat!"
Nat stepped forwards and gripped the sheets, pulling herself upwards, mentally thanking herself that she had some upper body strength at least. She grunted, climbing, climbing, the sensation that hit her as she poked her head through the ceiling back into Hawkins was like nothing she could describe. Being the right way up and the wrong way round all at the same time was the strangest experience. She pulled again, feeling her stomach lurch as she tumbled over herself, dropping with a thud onto the awaiting mattress. Nancy and Steve were looking up at her grinning. She took Eddie's outstretched hand, standing quickly.
"That was awesome!"
"Let's go Nancy!" Robin called. They waited for a few seconds, clear of the landing pad. When Nancy or Steve failed to emerge, Dustin made to take a step forward.
"Nancy! Nancy, wake up!" Steve was shaking her frantically, she wouldn't budge. "Nancy!"
Steve was looking from Nancy to the group, panic filling his voice.
Nat looked to Max, who was watching, eyes narrowed, hand gripped tightly onto her Walkman. "Vecna."