Hello everyone! I've decided to keep the story going as I am enjoying writing it so I hope you are enjoying reading it. So with out further a due, here's chapter 2.

Chapter 2:

His arrival back into the natural world's Hawkins was not one of Eddie's finest moments. He really should have thought about it before jumping feet first through a ground portal that belonged to the upside down, there was no mattress ready to catch him as flew out feet first then landed back on the ground head first. How he hadn't broken his neck was a mystery.

"Damn that hurt!" Eddie complained as he steadily stood up rubbing his head. He repositioned his bandanna, then took a look around, "Where the hell am I?"

In front of him was a high muddy wall with what looked like broken electrical cables and water pipes sticking out of it. This was the case for behind him as well. At either side of him was what he could only describe as a cavern path, yet when he looked above, he could see the starry night sky. Looking down at the floor, his shoes were muddied by the puddles of mud created by the broken water pipes. Trying to remember his bearings, he worked out that he must still be near to the Creel house. After all, if any of his other journeys to the upside down was anything to go by, going through a portal would bring you out to the exact location you left from.

"Right... so that must mean I'm stood in the crack that that massive portal, earthquake thing left behind..." He spoke out loud to himself again as if confirming with himself. He looked back up, "So how the hell do I get out?"

Suddenly the portal at his feet began to vibrate as it slowly closed up.

"Shit I'm already failing my mission!" He panicked as he grabbed at it in vain trying to keep it open, "How the hell do I stop it from closing?"

"Don't worry about this one" Vecna's voice sounded in Eddie's head catching the male by surprise, "It isn't important"

"But you said not to let any portals close..." Eddie pointed out.

"I know what I said" Vecna sounded a little annoyed, "I was referring to the one that you are stood in"

With those words an image sprang into Eddie's mind of the massive portal he had witnessed opening earlier, spreading from four directions, right into the middle of Hawkins.

"This portal is the most important and must not be closed" Vecna continued, "The only one capable of achieving that, is Eleven. If she manages to close it, my entire plan will fail and you will wish I had left you dead!"

"So is that why you want me to bring Eleven to you?" Eddie asked shivering a little at Vecnas warning.

"One of the reasons"

"What's the others?" Eddie asked curiously.

"That is my business alone" Vecna almost growled in response, "Now get on with it. Bring me Eleven and seek your revenge. Once done, I will give to you what I promised"

"Chrissy?"

"Yes" Eddie didn't have to be a genius to hear the slight amusement in Vecnas voice as he answered him, "Now if you'll excuse me. I need to go and heal and collect my strength for when I am ready to release my plan"

"Wait! How do I get out of hear?" Eddie asked quickly.

"Climb" Was Vecnas simple and last word to Eddie.

"Climb?" Eddie questioned as he once again looked up and his heart sank as he was at least fifteen foot down, "There is no way I'm climbing that!"

He glanced in each direction to see if there was an easier way. Of course there wasn't.

"Damn it!" Eddie sighed heavily before gripping onto the muddy wall, "I should have done more sports"

Groaning, Eddie finally pulled himself up onto solid ground. He rolled onto his back and stared up at the night sky. It was at this point he was grateful for his newly sharpened nails, they definitely helped with the grip and speed of climbing. Surprisingly, Eddie found that he wasn't as tired as he thought he would be, maybe he was more athletic than he first thought! He was however, starving. That was easily explainable though, he hadn't eaten for hours, and he hadn't eaten a decent meal since the whole Eddie murderer, cult leader thing started. What wasn't explainable, was the fact he was craving something he couldn't place. Not thinking much of it and assuming he would figure it out once he saw it, he stood up and looked around. There in front of him was the destroyed Creel house and in front of that was a rusty, old, abandoned park. The sound of distant sirens suddenly entered his ears and he instantly knew they were heading this way. Probably due to the new wreckage and broken gas pipes and such. Quickly and without thinking, he ran into the nearby forest. He couldn't risk being seen. Whoever saw him might recognise him and then it would be game over for him for sure. Word of his sighting would get back to Dustin and the others, he needed them to believe he was still dead. At least for now, until he was ready for his own revenge. He knew that going back to his trailer was pointless. It was destroyed and probably surrounded by the authorities still. He needed somewhere more permanent. One where he wouldn't be disturbed.

It had been four days since Eddie had arrived back into Hawkins. He had managed to find himself some shelter in an old cabin he had found whilst searching through the forest. It was a few miles from town and deep enough into the forest that no one would find it. The water was still working but it tasted disgusting to him. Almost like he was drinking dirt. He put it down to the water sitting still in the pipes for so long and going stale. He didn't care that it didn't seem to quench his thirst as at least he was still getting some hydration and at least he could clean himself up a bit. As for food, he was lucky enough to find a few tins in a cupboard. He had checked the use by dates on them, and sure enough they were out of date. But they had to do, he couldn't exactly go into town to get anything. He'd be seen. They tasted like garbage and he only ate half a tin a day. He didn't really see the point anyways, they did nothing for his growing hunger and it was becoming increasingly painful. After finally having enough, he decided to go and see if he could come across anything edible, like a picnic he could steal or an empty car with groceries in. He knew it was unlikely, especially being so far out, but he was becoming desperate...

Eddie had been walking for a couple of hours and he wasn't going in any particular direction. He didn't know where to go on search of food. All he knew was, he needed to eat something decent now! Mulling over his options a sudden sound brought him out of his thoughts. He could hear a female voice chatting away happily to a male voice as the sound came sailing to his ears. Without warning, an engine revved and a car began to drive off. Alarmed, Eddie looked around wildly, yet he saw nothing as the sound from the car became quieter the further it drove away.

"That's strange" he thought, "It sounded like it was right next to me..."

Even stranger was the fact he could still hear the female as she gave out a small happy sigh and a giggle. Now curious and not knowing why, Eddie hastily began to walk in the direction the noises were coming from. As he got closer, a sweet smell began to overwhelm his nostrils. It quickly became more of him stalking the smell than finding out who ever this female was and why he could hear her from such a distance. His mouth was beginning to water, the burning sensation in his throat became worse and his stomach growled loudly. He had no idea what had gotten into him but it wasn't long before his vision focused in on a pretty blonde walking along a road towards Hawkins. He stopped in his tracks, he was about two hundred metres from her yet even from this distance his vision and hearing were surprisingly clear. He could make out every detail on her face and down to the neatly tied laces on her shoes. Yet, he could ignore all that. He was focused more on her neck, or more importantly, that sweet spot on a humans neck where the vain is easily accessible. She had no idea he was there as she walked along with a smile on her face. Yet Eddie found himself edging closer and closer to her even though deep down, he knew he shouldn't be. Before he even knew it himself, he stumbled out of the bushes right in front of her. The girl, quite rightly surprised, screamed a little before slightly recovering when she saw it was just another human being.

"What the fuck dude? Don't just run out of the trees at people like that! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!" the girl berated him before stopping to take a better look at him. Her eyes widened as she took in his torn and dirtied clothes and pale skin. His hair was slightly tangled, his nails sharp, his eyes had a tint of red in them when the sun caught them and his teeth, his teeth were practically fangs! "A...are you ok?" she asked him as she slowly began to back away with fear, "D...do you...do you need help?"

"No" Eddie answered as he slowly followed her. He was fighting the urge to rip into her throat. He had no idea why he felt so strongly to do so, but it was there and his body wouldn't let him walk away as badly as he wanted to. He could here her heart beat getting faster, pumping that sweet smelling blood around her body quicker, and he wanted it so badly.

"I...I don't live far from here... my...my parents are home. Let's go there...we can call you an ambulance or something..." the girl offered shakily as she began to speed up. Seeing that this male wasn't listening to her, she changed tactics, "Look, my boyfriend has just dropped me off. He will be back very soon. He's just gone to the store for snacks! If he sees you harassing me like this, he'll kick your arse! So you better get the hell out of here now!"

Eddie knew what the girl was saying wasn't the truth. The simple fact she had been dropped off here in the first place proved that. In was early morning and her boyfriend had obviously dropped her here as she didn't want her parents to find out that she was with him last night and not where she said she was. He wasn't coming back any time soon. Eddie's lips tugged up at the sides with amusement. Seeing that her lie wasn't working, the girl began to panic more when sudden realisation appeared on her face and she stared at him wide eyed.

"Y...your that murderer Eddie Munson everyone in town is talking about!"

"I'm not a murderer!" Eddie unexpectedly shouted causing the girl to fall down backwards.

Scared out of her mind, she began to scuttle backwards away from him with tears beginning to stream down her face.

"I didn't kill Chrissy or anyone else for that matter!" Eddie continued, "It was just some idiot Jock creating a story to make himself feel better rather than facing the truth!"

"P...please..." the girl begged, "I don't want to die...please, let me go"

"What's your name?" Eddie asked as the girl managed to stumble back to her feet.

"It's S...Sarah" the girl answered hesitantly, she thought that giving her name might humanise her enough for him to leave her alone. Seeing that didn't work, she turned quickly to run. However she didn't get far as Eddie grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him so that her back was to his front. He pinned both of her arms behind her back easily and held her head in place with his other hand on her chin.

"Well Sarah. Your blood smells delicious" Eddie growled as he sniffed at her neck.

Sarah began to scream and Eddie took the opportunity to use his middle fingers nail to make a slit on her throat, letting the blood out to run freely. She began to scream harder as Eddie hungrily began to suck at the wound, not letting a single drop go to waste. It was heaven, it tasted so good. It was like trying chocolate for the first time, sweet and creamy. The burning sensation in Eddie's throat was beginning to ease, as was his hunger. It wasn't until Sarah let out one last whimper and her head slouched to the side did Eddie realise what he was doing. He pulled away quickly from her with horror only for her to fall to the ground. She wasn't moving.

"Shit!... Shit shit shit!" Eddie cursed as he stared down at her not knowing why he had done what he had done and what to do now, "Please don't be dead!" He began to beg as he crouched down next to her. However the sound of an approaching car sent him into a bigger panic and he shot to his feet again, "Fuck!" He shouted as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. He took one last look at Sarah's body, "I'm so sorry!" were his last words to her. Tears were threatening at his eyes as he disappeared into the nearby trees once again.

"Dustin! Your friend is here to pick you up!" Dustin's mother called for him. After a few minutes she tried again, "Dustin are you coming?"

"Geeze mom, I have a broken foot!" Dustin complained as he finally appeared in front of her on his crutches, "What do you think I am?"

"Sorry, but sometimes its easy to forget. Are you sure your up for volunteering in your condition?"

"If I wasn't, I wouldn't have offered" Dustin reasoned, "Besides, I need to keep myself busy"

"Well ok...but please be careful"

"Yes mom"

"Love you"

"Love you to mom" Dustin smiled at her before leaving the house.

He hobbled towards Steve's car who was waiting for him patiently with Robin.

"Come on slow poke, we haven't got all day!" Steve grinned once he saw Dustin approaching.

"Ha ha very funny" Dustin sighed sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.

"Steve have some sympathy" Robin pretended to scold him, "You shouldn't assume that he'd be faster now just because he has four legs"

"You know" Dustin began, "You two should start your own comedy act. Your both hilarious"

"Now that you mention it, I have been thinking about it" Steve agreed with a grin.

"You know that was sarcasm right?" Robin asked him with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, I don't see it as sarcasm" Steve winked at her as he opened the car door for Dustin, "Now get in, and wipe your feet on the outside of the car this time!"

As they drove through town, they took in the damage that had been done to it thanks to Vecna. Luckily the rest of the town thought it was an earthquake though to Dustin, Steve and the others involved in this upside down disaster, it was hard to believe the townsfolk still believed that theory considering that the cracks made a massive X shape and had glowed orange. But anything for an easy life they guessed. Though the road diversions on the way to the school, which was being used as a makeshift shelter thanks to all the damaged houses, said otherwise. Hopefully most would be up and running by the time summer break was over so that they all could get back to a somewhat normal life.

"Do you think that portal will activate again?" Robin asked concerned as she stared out of the car window towards the cordoned off streets.

"I hope not" Steve answered soberly as he drove on.

"I for one, hope it does" Dustin spoke from the back seat as he stared towards the road that they would usually take if they wanted to go to Eddie's trailer park.

"You do?" Robin asked surprised as she turned to look at him, "Why?"

"Its obvious" Steve answered for Dustin sounding sympathetic, "He wants to bring Eddies body home"

Dustin didn't say anything which was proof enough that what Steve said was the truth.

"Oh" Robin turned to look out the front window again not knowing what to say.

"Dustin?" Steve spoke, "I know you don't want to hear this but, it's a waste of time fixating on the idea. It's not healthy and its going to send you insane"

"We should have grabbed him when we had the chance" Dustin argued back.

"I know!" Steve relented, "But between getting you back with your foot and worrying if Vecna was still alive and out to get us, played a big part in our hurry back"

"Plus not knowing if the portal would close or not also played a part" Robin added quietly, "We would have been trapped there"

"Trust me" Steve spoke again a little more calmly, "If an opportunity arrives where I can get back to the upside down, I'll take it. I'll bring Eddies body back so we can have closure and give him a proper burial"

"If 'You' can get back to the upside down?" Dustin questioned.

"Yes 'me' and me alone"

"That's not happening. If there is indeed an opportunity, I'm going with you!"

"And me" Robin added.

"Neither of you are. And neither are any of the others" Steve put his foot down on the matter, "For one its dangerous there, and two, you don't need to see that. We don't know how long he's going to be lying there for before we can get him back. You all need to remember him how he was..."

The car ride went quiet after this as they each let the grim reality of what Steve was saying sink in. He did speak the truth but even so, Dustin felt it was still his responsibility to bring Eddie home. Finally they pulled into the car park of the school and parked up. Stepping out of the car they began greeting people as they walked into the school.

It was halfway through the day and things were beginning to pick up as the dinner rush arrived. People were turning up for food and drinks and brought along with them chatter and what could only be described as unease. Dustin was growing increasingly curious as he walked around collecting dirty dishes and catching small amounts of what was being said.

"Yes, apparently found at the side of the road" one person said.

"Poor girl had her throat cut" another said.

"Police are saying it was an animal attack as most of her blood had been drained. But what animal will cut someone's throat and drain their blood?" someone else added.

Dustin practically broke his neck as he rushed over to where Steve and Robyn were washing dishes on his crutches. They both turned to face him with surprise as he shouted for their attention.

"Guys, guys! Have you heard what people are talking about?" he asked them.

"Keep your voice down!" Steve scolded him, "People are looking"

Dustin looked around and saw that Steve was right. People nearby were giving him a weird look as they tried to figure out what had him so worked up.

"Maybe we should all take a break?" Robin suggested, "I think the others have this place under control for now. So let's go outside for a bit"

"Yeah" Dustin agreed readily, as did Steve.

They managed to get an empty picnic table to themselves away from the crowds. And Dustin told them everything he had heard as he had walked around the dining room.

"You don't think it's anything to do with the upside down do you?" Dustin asked once he had finished.

"I doubt it" Steve thought reasonably, "That big X portal that destroyed our town isn't active. And we already know that anything from the upside down can't survive without one being open as they get cut off from the hive"

"That being said. We don't know if a smaller portal is open somewhere..." Robin pointed out.

"True, but what monster from there does what they did to that girl?" Steve asked.

"None that we know of" Dustin spoke, "But that doesn't mean there isn't one"

"For all we know it could just be some psycho that slit her throat and then she bled out" Steve continued, being rational again, "Maybe their taking advantage of the mass panic that's already happening. And you know people like to twist stories into something else. So half of what people are saying might not even be true"

"I hate to say it, but Steve's right Dusty" Robin began to speak, "We just have no proof. I know your hoping that a portal has opened, but I wouldn't hold your breath"

"Yeah yeah" Dustin finished miserable.

Just then a loud shout sailed towards them. They all turned to seek the source and running towards them looking rather flustered, was Nancy.

"Hey! There you guys are!" She panted as she finally reached them, "I've got something important to tell you all..."

"What is it?" Steve asked intrigued.

"If its about that girl who was attacked. We already know" Dustin cut her off before she could speak again, "Steve's already debunked it to being a psycho"

"Oh? Has he now?" Nancy raised an eyebrow at her former boyfriend.

"Well... what else would it be?" he asked getting a little flustered himself.

"I thought with everything we've all been through, you'd have more of an open mind" Nancy continued to stare him down.

"Thank you" Dustin thanked her for being the only other person to have not closed her mind off.

"So was that what you wanted to tell us?" Robin asked to get the conversation moving again.

"Well yes.. but also no" Nancy spoke hurriedly as she sat down with them, "As you all apparently know, a girl called Sarah Gibson was attacked first thing this morning by something that no one can seem to agree on"

"Sarah Gibson? Wait... isn't she in your year?" Steve asked.

"Yes, she was quiet but popular" Nancy continued, "Anyways, I managed to get to the crime scene this morning and speak to a few people present. Turns out she had been with her boyfriend last night and he had dropped her off in the spot she was attacked in this morning. It wasn't far from her home but naturally other than just blaming it on an animal attack, he is also a suspect. However judging from how upset he is, I don't believe it was him"

"So who or what do you think did it?" Robin asked.

"Well that's the thing, I managed to get a quick look at where she was attacked whilst the police were distracted. And if she had bled out, then there definitely would have been more blood present then what was actually there, so she definitely had most of it drained"

"So your conclusion is?" Steve asked knowing that she thought it was more than just a random animal or man.

"Well that's another thing..."Nancy picked her words carefully now as she glanced at Dustin who didn't seem the least bit interested in the conversation now, "I found something whilst there... something that gleamed when the sun caught it just right, it was in the undergrowth"

"Well what was it?" Robin and Steve both asked together getting increasingly impatient.

Nancy took a folded up napkin out of her pocket and placed it gently in front of Dustin. He looked down at it and then back up to Nancy questioningly.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Open it, but be careful not to actually touch it. It's evidence, I picked it up in that napkin"

"Oh well done Nancy, stealing evidence is a crime!" Steve berated her as Dustin carefully unfolded the napkin.

"You'll see why" Nancy explained, "We're just lucky the police didn't notice it first"

"And why is tha..." Steve's words were cut off as suddenly a shiny, silver ring fell out of the napkin and onto the table.

Dustin's breath caught in his throat as did everyone else's. Not caring that it was evidence anymore, Dustin picked it up for a closer look.

"I...its Eddies" he exclaimed.

"It can't be" Steve also exclaimed in disbelief, "Eddies dead, we checked his pulse! He was gone... it must be someone else's. More than one of those rings exists after all"

"No its Eddies" Dustin remained adamant, "He even said he got it from out of town"

"Doesn't mean no one else didn't either..."

"Come on Steve. Even you've got to admit that it's very unlikely to be someone else's" Nancy reasoned.

"I agree" Robin joined in again, "It seems unlikely to be someone else's. But he could have dropped it before he went into the upside down" She added rationally.

"No..." Steve spoke quietly, "When I checked his pulse, all of his rings were still on his fingers..."

They fell into a silence for awhile as they stared at the ring. After what seemed like a lifetime, but was probably only a minute, Steve spoke again.

"So what does this mean?"

"Eddie can't be alive...he just can't... He died in my arms, I watched him die!" Dustin stood up frustrated and began to pace, "Surely if he was back he would come and show us he us alright...wouldn't he?"

"Who know? Apparently he's to busy going around slitting girls throats and draining their blood..." Steve added, "So what? He's come back as a murderer?"

"Not a murderer" Nancy interrupted, "Sarah didn't die, not yet anyways. She's in critical condition and did need resuscitating. But she's still with us, only shes in a coma and having a major blood transfusion. Well that's what I got out of Lucas anyways after I asked him to look round the hospital for me whist he's there visiting Max. I've asked him to keep us updated and to let us know when she wakes up. Hopefully she will be able to tell us if it was Eddie or not"

"Guys, we need to find him" Dustin turned to them again, "If we did get it wrong and he is alive, he will need our help. He was really injured!"

"Fine. But where do we start looking?" Steve sighed.

"Where do you think?" Robin spoke as if it was obvious.

"We start at the crime scene" Nancy finished.

Well that was it for chapter 2. I hope you all enjoyed it and hopefully chapter 3 will be out shortly. As always please feel free to review and until next time, have fun!