[ Location: Hawkins Middle School - Rear Entrance ][ Time: 8:15 AM ]
Funerals are depressing. Fake funerals are weird. Breaking into a school during a fake funeral? That's just a Tuesday for us apparently.
"Keep your head down," Mike hissed, adjusting his backpack.
I pulled the hood of my borrowed, oversized sweatshirt lower. I felt ridiculous. I looked like a budget version of the Unabomber.
'I'm a Millionaire's son. I should be wearing Armani, not... whatever polyester nightmare this is.'
El was walking beside me, wearing a pink dress and a blonde wig that Mike had dug out of his basement. She looked like a doll that had seen some things.
"Pretty?" she asked me again, touching the scratchy synthetic hair.
"Stunning," I whispered. "Very... inconspicuous."
The parking lot was full. Everyone was in the gym for the assembly. The hallway lights hummed with that specific frequency that makes you feel tired and anxious at the same time.
"Okay," Lucas checked the corner. "The coast is clear. Mr. Clarke is at the assembly. The AV room should be empty."
We sprinted down the hallway. My sneakers squeaked on the linoleum.
'Stealth level: 0.'
We reached the AV Room door. Locked. Obviously.
"Damn it," Dustin rattled the handle. "It's locked."
"Mr. Clarke always locks it," Mike groaned. "We need the key. It's in the janitor's closet, but that's on the other side of the school."
"We don't have time," Lucas checked his watch. "The assembly ends in twenty minutes."
They all looked at El.
El stared at the door lock. She tilted her head.
'Wait. This is my moment. El is tired. If she uses too much power now, she might pass out before we reach Will. I need to step up. I need to grind.'
"Save your energy, El," I said, stepping forward. "I got this."
Lucas rolled his eyes. "You? You gonna stare it open?"
"Watch and learn, Sinclair."
I placed my hand on the doorknob. I closed my eyes. I visualized the tumblers inside the lock.
'Okay, Telekinesis. Don't fail me. It's just a small metal pin. Push it up. Turn the barrel.'
[ Ability Active: Telekinesis. ]
The pressure built in my skull immediately. It felt like someone was inflating a balloon behind my eyes.
Click.
One tumbler.
Click.
Two.
'Come on...'
My nose started to run. Warm liquid.
Click-Thunk.
The lock turned.
"Whoa," Dustin whispered.
I opened the door, wiping my nose on my sleeve. "After you, gentlemen."
[ System Notice: Telekinesis Proficiency Increased. ][ Current Mastery: Level 1 (8%) ]
'2% gain for a door lock? This system is stingy.'
[ Location: AV Room ][ Time: 8:30 AM ]
The Heathkit ham radio sat on the desk like a shrine to nerd culture. It was huge, covered in dials and switches.
"Okay," Mike sat in the chair, flipping switches. "I need to find the frequency. It was... it was static, but empty static."
El sat next to him. She looked at the radio, then at me. She looked scared.
"It's okay," I said, leaning against the desk (mostly to keep myself upright). "Just find him. Like yesterday."
Mike tuned the dial. Skreeeee-ooonk. Static filled the room.
El closed her eyes. She leaned forward. The lights in the room dimmed.
'She's projecting,' I thought. 'She's searching the void.'
I felt a pull. My Remote Viewing sense was tingling. It was reacting to El's psychic output.
'If I activate Remote Viewing now... can I see what she sees? Can I piggyback on her signal?'
It was dangerous. My head was already throbbing.
'Do it. For the grind. For Will.'
[ Ability Active: Remote Viewing (Assist Mode). ][ Warning: High Strain Anticipated. ]
The world dropped away.
I wasn't in the AV room anymore. I was... nowhere. Just blackness. And water.
I saw El. She was standing in the black void. And in front of her... a small, shivering figure huddled on the ground.
Will.
"Will?" El's voice echoed in the room and in my mind.
On the radio, the static cleared.
"...mom?"
It was loud. Clearer than the walkie-talkie.
"Will!" Mike screamed at the radio. "Will, it's me! It's Mike!"
"...Mike?" Will's voice sounded weak, terrified. "Mike... is that you?"
"Yeah! Yeah, it's me! We're here! We're coming for you!"
"Will," Lucas leaned in. "It's Lucas. And Dustin. And Vivan."
"...guys..." Will sobbed. "...it's so cold. It's dark. It's like home, but... empty."
My head felt like it was splitting open. The strain of maintaining the connection alongside El was immense.
"...Mom?" Will asked again.
"She's coming!" Mike promised. "We're telling her! Will, where are you? Can you describe it?"
"...I don't know... it's dark... no people... just... him."
Him. The Monster.
"Will," I forced my mind to speak, my voice coming out of my physical mouth in a rasp. "The gate. How did you get there?"
"...the tree..." Will whispered. "...the tree near my house..."
Suddenly, a sound tore through the transmission. A roar. Like a lion mixed with a screeching tire.
The Demogorgon.
El's eyes snapped open wide. In the void, I saw the monster's shadow falling over Will.
"...it's here!" Will screamed. "IT'S HERE!"
"WILL!" Mike yelled.
The radio sparked. Smoke poured out of the back.
Boom!
A small explosion of sparks erupted from the Heathkit. The speaker blew out.
"No!" Mike grabbed the radio, burning his fingers. "Will! Will!"
Silence. Just the smell of burnt ozone and melted plastic.
I snapped back to my body. I collapsed onto the floor, clutching my head. Blood was pouring from both nostrils now.
[ System Notice: Remote Viewing Proficiency Increased. ][ Current Mastery: Level 1 (25%) ][ Warning: Psionic Overload. Rest recommended. ]
El slumped in her chair, panting. She looked at me. We exchanged a look of pure terror.
"He's there," Mike whispered, staring at the smoking radio. "He's really there."
"And the monster found him," Lucas said, his voice trembling.
Suddenly, the door handle rattled.
"Who's in there?!"
It was Mr. Clarke's voice. The assembly was over.
"Crap!" Dustin hissed.
"Open this door!" Mr. Clarke demanded.
"We have to go," I whispered, wiping the blood from my face. "Window."
We scrambled to the window. It was ground level. We pushed it open and tumbled out into the bushes just as we heard the key turn in the AV room door.
[ Location: Behind the School ][ Time: 9:00 AM ]
We sat huddled behind the dumpster, catching our breath.
"He said it's like home," Mike said, pacing. "Like home but dark."
"And empty," Lucas added.
"It's a reflection," I said, holding my head. "Like... the Vale of Shadows."
Dustin's eyes lit up. "The Vale of Shadows! It's an echo dimension! A dark reflection of our world!"
"So he's in Hawkins," Mike realized. "But... the Upside Down version."
"And he said the tree," I added. "The tree near his house. That's where the gate was."
"Was?" Lucas asked.
"It closed," El said softly.
"So we need to find another one," Mike said. "Another gate."
"But how?" Dustin threw his hands up. "We don't know where they are! They could be anywhere!"
I looked at El. She was staring at Dustin's compass.
"El?" I asked.
She didn't answer. She just stared at the needle.
"Guys," I said. "Look at the compass."
Dustin looked down. "What? It's just pointing North."
"Is it?" I asked.
Dustin turned around. "Wait. True North is that way." He pointed toward the school. "The needle is pointing... East."
"Toward the Lab," Lucas whispered.
"A magnetic field," Dustin gasped. "A gate... a rip in spacetime... it would create a massive electromagnetic field! It would mess with the compasses!"
"We can use them," Mike realized. "We can use the compasses to find the gate."
I smiled weakly. The plot was back on track.
I stood up, offering a hand to El.
"Ready to go hunting?" I asked.
El nodded. "Hunting."
[ Quest Update: Find the Gate. ][ Difficulty: Very High. ][ Reward: 200 Points. ]
'200 points. That's halfway to Telekinesis Level 2 ,if I could buy it, which I can't. But hey, at least I might get enough experience to stop bleeding from my face every five minutes.'
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