CARDIGAN | SEASON III ; ACT II
.୧ ‧₊˚⋅☀️ chapter 16 ━━━━━━ ❛the battle of starcourt mall❜
꒦꒷🎞️꒷꒦
EL LET OUT A PIERCING SCREAM OF PAIN.
"What is that?" Erica exclaimed. Something was moving inside the wound El had on her leg.
"There's something in there." Mike stated.
"No!" El cried.
Ara swore under her breath, freaking out.
"Keep her talking. Keep her awake, okay?" Jonathan ordered. He then ran off to do who knows what.
"You know it's not really that bad." Robin started to ramble. "The goalie on my soccer team, Beth Wildfire, this other girl slid into her leg, and —like— the whole bone came out off her knee— six inches or something, it was insane."
"Robin." Steve interjected bluntly.
"Yeah?"
"Yours not helping."
"I'm sorry."
Jonathan had came back with a heated knife in hand.
"Okay. Alright, El? This is gonna hurt like hell, okay." He stated.
"Okay." She sobbed.
"I need you to stay real still. Here," he said, give a wooden spoon, "you're gonna want to bite down on this, okay?"
He then held the knife and started to cut through her skin.
Ara closed her eyes shut, and tried focusing on anything other than the fact Jonathan was cutting into El's leg. She heard El's shrieks which caused her to close her eyes tighter.
Jonathan now inserted his hand in the cut. If you weren't disgusted before you sure were now.
"Jonathan!" Nancy exclaimed.
"Stop talking!"
"No! Stop it!" El screamed. "I can do it."
She slowly sat up. She positioned her hand over the wound.
She started yelling as the thing came closer to getting out. The glass behind them then broke and she threw the slimy claw away.
It crawled away a bit before getting stomped on by Hopper.
Along with him there was Joyce and this unknown man.
Both groups stared at each other.
————
"The Mind Flayer," Mike said, "it built this monster in Hawkins, to stop El, to kill her and pav a way into our world."
"And it almost did." Nancy added. "That was just one tiny piece of it."
"How big is this thing?" Hopper asked.
"Maybe around thirty feet." Ara stated.
"Yeah." Lucas agreed. "It sorta destroyed your cabin. Sorry."
"Okay, so, just to be clear," Steve began, "this.. this big fleshy spider thing that hurt El, it's some kind of gigantic weapon?"
"Yes."
"But instead of, like, screws and metal, the Mind Flayer made its weapon.. with melted people."
"Yes, exactly." Nancy said.
"Yeah, okay. I'm just making sure."
"Are we sure this thing is still out there, still alive?" Joyce asked.
"El beat the shit out of it, but, yeah, it's still alive." Max replied.
"But if we close the gate again—" Will stated.
"We cut the brain off from the body."
"And kill it." Lucas and Ara said.
"Theoretically." Lucas went on.
"Yoo-hoo!" The man, that was with Joyce and Hopper, yelled. "Yoo-hoo!" He repeated, waving blueprints in the air.
————
They huddled around a table and the man spoke.
"Okay, this is what Alexei called 'the hub.' Now the hub takes us to the vault room."
"Okay, where's the gate?" Hopper questioned.
"Right here." The man said, pointing. "I don't know the scale on this, but I think it's fairly close to the vault room, maybe fifty feet or so."
"More like five hundred." Erica corrected. "What, you're just gonna waltz in there like it's commie Disneyland or something?"
"I'm sorry, who are you?"
"Erica Sinclair. Who are you?"
"Murray.. Bauman."
"Listen, Mr. Bunman, I'm not trying to tell you how to do things, but I've been down in that shithole for 24 hours. And with all due respect, you do what this man tells you, you're all gonna die."
"I'm sorry, why is this four year old speaking to me?" Murray argued.
"I'm ten, you bald bastard!" Erica sassed.
"Erica!" Lucas scolded.
"Just the facts!"
"She's right." Dustin informed. "You're all gonna die, but you don't have to. Excuse me, may I." Dustin said. "Please." Dustin took the blue prints and examined it.
"Okay, see this room here? This is a storage facility. There's a hatch in here that feeds into their underground ventilation system." He started. "That will lead you to the base of the weapon. It's a bit of a maze down there, but between me and Erica, we can show you the way."
"You can show us the way?" Hopper questioned
"Don't worry, you can do all the fighting and dangerous hero shit, and we'll just be your.. navigators.
"No."
————
"Well, that settles it. He's gonna die. They're gonna die." Erica said.
"Yep, most likely." Dustin said, popping the p.
"You guys survived." Lucas stated.
"Barely." Dustin added. "We could've really used you guys down there."
"We could've used you up here, too." Mike responded.
"Yeah, man." Lucas agreed. "We missed you, dude."
"Yeah. Big-time." Will chimed in. All four of them hugged each other.
"I missed you guys too. Big-time."
"Please don't cry nerds." Erica interjected. "Erica." Lucas scolded. Again.
"Keep saying my name, see what happens."
"Hey, head up. You can navigate, just from someplace safe." Hopper announced.
"It's not that simple." Dustin addressed.
"The signal won't reach." Erica went on.
"Not with this. You need something with a high enough frequency band to relay with the Russians' radio tower. But for that to work, you need someone who has both seen their comms room and has access to a super-powered handcrafted radio tower, one preferably already situated at the highest point in Hawkins. Oh wait. That's me. If you want us to navigate, you go us. But we need a head start."
"And a car."
————
Ara, Max and Mike all helped El to the car.
"El, you're bleeding." Max and Ara spoke.
"Are you okay?" Mike asked.
"Yeah."
"Okay." Ara said while they helped her in the car.
They heard the car engine sputter and this caught Ara's attention.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"I don't.. I don't know." Nancy stammered.
They heard the engine sputter again.
"You can't be serious. Come on!"
"Didn't your mom just buy this car?" Lucas questioned from the back of the car.
"Yes. I'm sure it's fine." Nancy assured.
"Did you leave the light on?" Will asked.
"No."
"Do we have gas?" Lucas went on.
"Yes!" She exclaimed. "Come on!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Just stop, stop!" Jonathan spoke. "I'll pop the hood."
Another car engine roared from the distance and it's headlights came on. The kids inside look at it in fear.
It was Billy.
"Back in the mall!" Nancy ordered them. "Go! Go, go, go!"
————
"Scoops troop, I repeat, do you copy?" Mike spoke into a walkie-talkie. "We're trapped in the mall and in need of emergency transportation. Scoops Troop, do you copy? Billy has found us."
Ara, Max and Will stood around Nancy who had a gun in hand.
"You're gonna kill him, aren't you?" Max said, worriedly.
"This is just a precaution, okay?" Nancy reassured.
"And not just against Billy." Will began. "If he knows we're here, so does the Mind Flayer."
"Scoops Troop, I repeat, we are in need of emergency transportation. Do you copy?"
"Not a chance that thing'll drive, right?" Nancy asked, talking about the car El threw at the Russians.
"We don't need it to drive." Jonathan blurted. "We just need the ignition cable.
They then all tried to push it with their bare hands.
Didn't work.
"Let me try. I can do it." El declared.
They backed away from the car, letting El do her thing.
She extended a hand out and the car started to move a bit. Just not enough. El had already reached her limit.
————
"Told you, physics." Mike said when they successfully push the car back up.
"How do we get it open?" Nancy asked.
"There should be a latch. Check under the wheel." Jonathan replied. "Do you see it?"
"What's she doing?" The twins questioned.
Mike turned and all three of them started at El who was rummaging through the trash.
Ara and Mike looked at each other, Ara shrugging and the three of them went over to check up on her. El placed a coke can in front of her. Try to crush it with her mind.
"El." The twins spoke.
"You okay?" Mike went on.
Max saw Will though his hand to his neck, then she looked up..
Pound footsteps were heard and screeching as well.
"Mike, Ara." She urged.
"Nancy!" Mike yelled.
Ara took ahold of Max, Mike and El and they ran to hide.
"Griswold Family, it's Scoops Troop. Please confirm your safety." Dustin's voice over the walkie-talkie.
Will, Jonathan, Nancy and Lucas hide behind the car while the others were hid behind a counter.
They heard the roaring of the Mind Flayer behind them.
It was now circling around the mall.
"It turned away." Mike announced. "If we go up the stairs now, we'll make it."
"No way," Max began.
"Not with El's leg." Ara went on.
"We have to try." Mike said.
"There's another way.." El spoke in a hushed tone, "to get out. Through the Gap."
Ara turned to see the Mind Flayer.
"Okay. Now."
They all ran to the Gap. El fell as they entered the store, getting the Mind Flayer's attention.
They were thankfully able to make it through in time to the back of the store. Hidden away.
Subsequently when it's attention was diverted the four ran through a back door.
————
They had made it to the parking lot when they saw Billy.
Ara swore under her breath.
"Go!" Mike called out repeatedly.
Max let go of El, letting Ara take her place to close the fence gate.
They ran through that back halls as quick as they possibly could.
"In here." Mike ordered as they saw a door. "Okay, come on.."
Billy was trailing behind them and this didn't go unnoticed by Max. She went out to see him and spoke.
"Billy." She remarked, wearily.
"Max." Ara cautioned.
"Billy, you don't have to do this. Billy. Your names Billy, Billy Hargrove. You live on 4819 Cherry Lane. Billy, please, I'm Max, I'm your—"
"Max!" Ara called out.
Billy had knocked Max out cold. Ara and Mike went after Max and trying to fend off Billy, unsuccessfully.
He then did the same to El, throwing her over his shoulder.
————
Max blinked her eyes open.
"Ara.. Mike?"
"Guys, can you hear me? Guys! Come on!"
Ara's eyes snapped open along with Mike.
"You two, okay?" She asked. The lights flickered and the three looked around. No sign of El.
"Where is she?" Mike questioned.
————
They made it back into the mall to see Billy standing up against the Mind Flayer.
It reach out one of its tentacles to him.
"Billy!" Ara yelled.
Then another two came to him. Clawing his body.
Then another one.
And another one.
Another one..
One to the chest...
"Billy!" Max screamed.
Then they released him. His body limp on the floor.
It was as if time slowed and Ara was just stuck there. She didn't know what to do.
She just stared in shock, fear, terror.
Then the monster went limp as well. Dead on the mall's floor.
The twins rushed to Billy's blood covered body.
"Billy, please." Ara croaked.
"Billy."
"I'm sorry.." Billy said.
'I'm sorry.'
'I'm sorry..'
That was all he said before he was gone.
Mike ran over, wrapping his arms around Ara in a comforting hug as she stared at Billy's body with tears threatening to fall.
————
Ara sat alone in the back of a fire truck. A blanket covering her body.
She watched as the men entered the build. Lights flashing red and blue. Her head pounding.
She then saw Mike. He came over to her and sat down.
"Hey." He said grimly.
"I— I never thought that—that this would happen to him." Ara stammered after a moment. "I don't even know what to say."
He wrapped an arm around the girl.
"I don't really want to think about it." Ara went on. "I just wanna forget about it. I've always said I've hated him. So, why care now."
"It's not a problem if you feel sad.. about it." Mike spoke.
Ara looked at him. In his eyes.
"Thanks." She said.
THREE MONTHS LATER
El and Ara sat in Ara's bedroom.
Ara had shown her the Amazing Spider-Man comic series and she was reading one of the books at that moment.
"You're like me, now." El stated.
"What do you mean."
"If you can enter the void then.. you might have tele—telek.."
"Telekinesis?"
"Yeah."
Ara sighed and raised her head from the comic she was reading.
"But how would I know? How would I even learn how to use it?"
"I can— I can teach you."
"You only have one week left here in Hawkins."
"Then let's make the most of it."
————
"You guys are so funny, you should be on Carson." Dustin said sarcastically to Max, Lucas, Ara and Mike.
"Can't we just hear your rendition?" Max joked.
"No."
"Please? Just one verse?" Mike teased.
"No. No way. It's reserved for Susie's ears and Susie's ear alone." Dustin argued. Ara laughed at this statement.
"Turn around." The quartet went on. "Look at what you see. In her face."
Matt walked passed and teased Dustin by making a kissing face.
Dustin flipped them all off which only made them sing louder and laugh along.
————
Ara hugged Will goodbye.
"I'll miss you and your D&D obsession." She joked.
"I'll miss you and your comic book obsession, too." He chuckled.
She then went to hug El. They had only spent some time with each other but El didn't know what she'd do without her.
They watched as the Byers left. Standing in front of there house for what seems like the last time.
Ara stayed behind a bit before going to get her bike. Before leaving she waved Mike goodbye until their date the next weekend.
But things were changing. And Ara didn't know if she wanted them to.
idrk know. Anyways I hope liked the season rewrite.
— Mary <3