CHAPTER 24
THE GATE

"OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!"

Veronica tried to drown out Dustin's shrieks as she sprinted out of the tunnels. Her hands clutched Steve's and they both tried to follow the same path they took to get inside the tunnels. Her feet thudded against the cold mud, and she subtly felt something trying to grab her ankles, but she ran. Oh, did Veronica run.

Ashes kept flying in their faces as Steve pulled Veronica ahead. Their feet skidded to a stop as Steve looked at Mike's map, shining his flashlight down the end of the tunnel. "This way!" Steve called, jumping over a large rock and leading them through another tunnel entrance. Veronica held onto his hand even tighter as they wandered through the wide corridors.

But then they heard it: "HELP! HELP! HELP!"

The two teenagers sprinted backwards, finding Mike Wheeler in the dirt. He screamed loudly as a vine hooked itself around his leg, pulling him into the ground below. "HELP!" Mike yelled again as the group arrived on scene. Lucas began heaving Mike back, and then Dustin held on too. Max went forth to grab the vine, but she was pushed out of the way by Veronica.

"Get back! Everybody back!" Steve ordered.

Veronica pushed Steve behind her, whipping out her hockey stick and puncturing the vine with it's spikes. She shoved his hockey stick into the dirt several times, causing a sweat to coat her brow. She kept hitting the vine until it's slimy, snake-like body stopped moving. Her arm muscles hurt, and as she stood up straight, she found Steve blinking at her, his eyes appearing bigger than usual because of his goggles.

They hauled Mike back up, and Lucas asked quickly, "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," Mike nodded.

"Okay, guys, we gotta go. We gotta go." Dustin called out, ushering his friends forward.

But they were stopped again, and this time, the situation was worse. A growl sounded behind them. Dustin was in the middle of pushing Mike to continue running when they looked behind them to see a figure. This wasn't just any figure; it was a monster. Veronica's eyes went wide at the sight of a Demodog before her, and she moved herself behind Steve as she clutched his arm. She almost wanted to pinch herself to make sure this was real, but she knew doing that was out of pure ignorance.

Dustin was in front of everyone, shoving his friends behind his back. There was a hint of recognition in his eyes, leaving Veronica to wonder if this was the infamous Dart he talked about so much. He spread out his arms, protecting them from the Demodog creeping forward. Steve laid a hand on Dustin's shoulders, but the younger boy felt no fear. "Dart," he whispered.

The Demodog released a low growl. Dustin began to move forward, despite the numerous protests behind him. "Trust me," Dustin muttered as he walked forward. Dart patted his paws closer to Dustin as he greeted, "Hey, it's me, Dart. It's me."

Dustin removed his goggles and bandana, revealing his full face to the creature he once sheltered. "It's your friend. It's Dustin," he introduced with a wave. Dustin then kneeled before Dart, asking, "You remember me?"

The Demodog began to coo, much to Veronica's surprise. The blue-haired girl slowly appeared from behind Steve, watching the exchange between creature and boy carefully. She was almost reminded of Frankenstein.

"Then will you let us pass?" Dustin asked after his creature's reply.

Dart immediately opened his whole face, bearing his teeth for all of them to see. Veronica was close to releasing a shriek, but Steve quickly slapped his hand over her mouth. "Okay," Dustin sighed, "sorry. I'm sorry about the storm cellar. That was a pretty douchey thing to do. You hungry? I've got our favorite." He went into the pocket of his backpack and pulled out a Three Musketeers bar. "Nougat!"

"He's insane," Max whispered, only to be shushed by her friends.

The Demodog moved even closer as Dustin unwrapped the candy bar. He laid out the chocolate in front of Dart, which the monster then sniffed and began to chew. As Dustin kept eye contact on Dart, he gestured with his hand for his friends to run by the Demodog. Mike passed first, then Lucas, then Max. Veronica hopped over the monster cautiously, while Steve trailed behind her.

Veronica could see the small amount of sadness in Dustin's eyes as he walked away from Dart. He watched his creature eat the human food, feeling the connection between them grow weak, because he knew their friendship could never be. Veronica was reminded of Frankenstein again, specifically the moment where Victor fears if his monster will procreate to make more. A race of devils would be propagated upon the earth, who might make the very existence of the species of man a conditional precarious and full of terror, Mary Shelley had written. Perhaps, maybe – just maybe – her favorite book had predicted their future.

"Goodbye, buddy," Dustin whispered before he was quickly shuffled out of the tunnels.

They ran at the speed of light, moving through each entrance and each branch. Minutes later, the ground began to rumble. Veronica was shaken from her feet, and tumbled to the dirt, along with the rest of the kids. Roars caused the soil walls to crumble onto their heads. "What was that?" Max exclaimed.

Mike looked behind his shoulder, hearing the shrieks with a clear definition. He shined his flashlight down the tunnel and muttered, "They're coming."

They were running again, feet tripping over the struggles put in their path. Luckily, the group were close to where they had entered the tunnels. One right turn later, Steve pointed out the rope that lowered them down ahead. The kids were screaming, but Steve helped each and every one of them up the hole. He hauled them upward by underneath their armpits. First Max, then Lucas, and then Mike.

Veronica was standing in front Steve, blinking quickly at him as the Demodog roars became louder. "You're amazing," she breathed out.

"I know," Steve nodded before picking her up and onto the rope.

Veronica pulled herself up on the ratted rope as quickly as she could. Each time her hands gripped the rope, they burned. She breathed heavily as she hauled herself up, her eyes becoming blind as they came into contact with the headlights of Billy's car in front of the hole. She looked back down, spotting Steve and Dustin still down there. The roars were closer now, and she guess they were five feet away.

"Both of you," she called, "get up here right –"

But they were rushing by already. Steve had his bat out, ready to strike, though the Demodogs were running past them. They acted as if Steve and Dustin weren't even there. Something was calling them away. Their leader.

"STEVE!"

The teenaged male looked up, seeing Veronica reaching her hand out. He held up Dustin, who Veronica pulled up with all the strength left in her weak arms. Lucas held Veronica's back straight as she then hauled Steve up with her small hands. Steve coughed up dirt as his face was planted in it while he sat up on the real ground. Dustin heaved beside him, and Veronica wiped the sweat off her brow.

When they all stood, the headlights of their car went bright. They were changing. They kept getting brighter, and brighter, and even brighter. And even as confusion racked all their brains, Mike always knew the answer. That came in the form of him whispering, "Eleven."

•••

Edward hadn't seen anything like it before. Hopper had lowered the three of them down into the center of the Upside Down on a mechanical elevator, and Edward found his knees shaking. They were surrounded by a red hue on all sides. A mesh lining hung in front of the bright light around them, giving the three a glimpse of the Mind Flayer, almost as if it was hiding behind a curtain. Ashes wafted into Edward's nostrils.

Eleven squeezed Hopper's hand quickly, a gesture that Edward got a chance to glimpse. The child let go and approached the edge of the elevator, slowly raising her hand. Almost instantly, the sound of static flooded Edward's ears. He had been tightly gripping his pistol, pointing it towards the gate of the beast, but it was no use then. The middle of the mesh dawned a bright white light, pulsing at the touch of Eleven's power. The Mind Flayer's shadow moved around the gate.

Edward couldn't believe what he was seeing. This was the darkness lurking beneath Hawkins all along. This was what he could never see, and yet now, he was. Edward was awestruck. This was the reason why little Will Byers disappeared last year.

Eleven's hand wavered. Blood dripped from her left nostril, falling onto the edge of her top lip. Her eyes were determined. She was draining its power. The red hue was losing its saturation. She was channeling the anger from her past. She thought of the lab. She thought of Papa, knowing her real father figure was standing beside her. She was channeling everything into this one gate. Eleven needed to close this ... for good.

Edward blinked as a dark crust began to spread over the gate, tying itself within the red mesh. The Mind Flayer shrieked, and it pierced Edward's ears. He plugged his fingers in his ears as a roar appeared closer to him. Edward swung his head to the side, seeing a Demodog on the roof of their elevator. He immediately fired his pistol, scaring even Hopper beside him. It took three bullets to cause the Demodog to fall off the elevator. Another one appeared on Hopper's side, and he killed it within a second.

The two officers shined their flashlights along the walls of the gate. "They're crawling near us!" Edward shouted.

They shot at them, killing each in their wake. A cloud of darkness emerged from the gate, venturing forth towards Eleven. The darkness – it tried to touch her, but she was stronger. Eleven defied gravity, her white Chucks lifting into the air. Her power created an orange circle of smoke, blocking the darkness from moving any further.

Edward looked over his shoulder, eyes growing wide at the sight before him. Eleven was something out of books, a completely fictional being. Her powers defied the laws of physics. She was so ... strong. Stronger than any human would ever be. Stronger than the pistol in his hands.

The gate crusted over itself, engulfing the dark cloud whole. Eleven immediately fell to her knees as the gate closed. She was drained, but still strong. Edward spun around, watching the Demodogs fall lifeless around them. Hopper was hugging Eleven, tighter than ever before.

They were safe.

( made by JustSav )