[ Location: Starcourt Mall - Service Corridor ][ Date: April 20th, 1985 - Saturday Night (9:05 PM) ]
"They just plugged it in," I repeated, the realization settling over the group like a cold blanket.
"A battery?" Steve whispered, looking at the floor as if he expected it to explode. "For what? A giant laser?"
"For the Gate," I said, grabbing Steve's arm. "The machine we saw... it rips holes in reality. They're trying to reopen the door El and I closed."
"The Upside Down?" Steve breathed, his face losing all color. "Again?"
Suddenly, heavy boots sounded on the metal stairs nearby. Russian shouting echoed in the concrete hallway.
"Sweep the sector!"
"They're coming," Robin hissed. "We have to go."
"Back way," I ordered. "Through the cinema construction site. Move."
We ran.
We scrambled over drywall and ducked under plastic sheeting. I used Telekinesis to silently move a scaffolding tower that was blocking our path, creating a bridge.
"Show off," Steve panted, climbing over it.
We burst out into the cool night air of the parking lot, piling into Steve's car.
"Go," I said.
[ Location: Mayor Kline's House - Bedroom ][ Time: 1:00 AM ]
Mayor Larry Kline was sleeping soundly, dreaming of reelection and expensive suits.
I stood at the foot of his bed.
'Metamorphmagus.'
My face shifted. My skin turned grey. My eyes turned black. I looked like a corpse dredged up from the lake.
'Illusion: Level 2.'
[ Ability Active: Nightmare Projection. ]
I focused on the room. Shadows lengthened. The temperature dropped. The sound of heavy, wet breathing filled the air.
"Larry," I whispered. My voice sounded like grinding stones (Telepathy modulation).
Kline woke up with a snort. He blinked. He saw me.
"GAH!" He scrambled backward, falling out of bed. "Who... what are you?!"
"I am the Consequences, Larry," I said, floating slightly off the ground (Telekinesis). "You sold our town. You let the Red Army in."
"I... I didn't!" Kline stammered, grabbing a lamp as a weapon. "It's just a mall! Economic growth!"
I laughed. The laugh echoed from all four corners of the room.
"Economic growth?" I waved my hand.
[ Illusion Active. ]
The walls of his bedroom dissolved. Instead of wallpaper, he saw the Upside Down. Vines slithering over his dresser. Spores drifting in the air. A Demogorgon roaring in his closet.
Kline screamed, curling into a ball. "MAKE IT STOP! I'LL DO ANYTHING!"
"The blueprints," I commanded, landing silently. "The power grid schematics for the Mall. And the deeds to the properties they bought."
"They're in the safe! In my office!" Kline sobbed. "Take them! Just leave me alone!"
"I'll be watching, Larry," I hissed. "If you tell the Russians... I'll feed you to the dogs."
I vanished (Apparition).
CRACK.
Kline was left alone in his dark, normal bedroom, sobbing into his silk pajamas.
[ Location: Hawkins Community Pool ][ Date: April 21st, 1985 - Sunday Afternoon ]
I needed to check the other loose end.
The pool was crowded. Kids screaming, splashing.
I walked toward the lifeguard chair.
Billy Hargrove was sitting there. He was wearing sunglasses. He looked... calm. Too calm.
Yesterday, he was frantic. Sweating. Drinking water.
Today, he was still. His skin was pale, but he wasn't sweating. He was watching the kids in the pool with a detached, cold interest.
'The struggle is over,' I realized, a pit forming in my stomach. 'He stopped fighting.'
I walked up to the chair.
"Hargrove."
Billy turned his head slowly. He lowered his sunglasses.
His eyes were blue. But there was no light in them. It was like looking into a shark's eyes.
"Frostwell," Billy said. His voice was smooth. Hollow. "Enjoying the swim?"
'Observe.'
[ Target: Billy Hargrove ][ Status: The Flayed (Active). ][ Controller: The Mind Flayer. ]
"You look better," I lied, leaning against the ladder.
"I feel... reborn," Billy smiled. It was a perfect, plastic smile. "You were right, Vivan. I just needed to let go."
"Let go?"
"Of the fear," Billy said softly. "It's much quieter now."
He looked at a group of kids playing Marco Polo near the edge.
"So much... life," Billy whispered.
'He's looking for recruits.'
"Stay away from them, Billy," I said, my voice low. "I know what you are."
Billy looked back at me.
The smile vanished.
"And I know what you are," he replied.
He leaned down.
"We are building something beautiful, Vivan. Don't get in the way. Or you'll be part of the foundation."
He put his sunglasses back on and blew his whistle. "NO RUNNING!" he shouted at a kid, sounding perfectly normal.
I backed away.
'He's gone. Billy is gone? No, Can't this fucking monster posses someone else!.'
[ Location: Brimborn Steelworks - Basement ][ Time: 9:00 PM ]
I returned to the scene of the crime.
The factory was burnt out from the fire I caused. But the basement... the basement was busy.
I stood in the shadows, using [ Remote Viewing ] to scout ahead.
The rats were back. Thousands of them.
But they weren't alone.
I saw Mrs. Driscoll (an old lady from town). I saw a stray dog.
They were walking toward a pulsating pile of flesh in the center of the room. The Biomass had survived the molten steel. It was smaller, burned, but regenerating.
The rats exploded. POP. POP.
The goop slithered into the pile. The Biomass grew.
Then, Mrs. Driscoll walked into the room. She didn't scream. She knelt before the pile.
The flesh reached out. A tentacle touched her face. Black veins spread instantly across her skin.
She stood up. Her eyes were black.
'She's Flayed,' I realized. 'He's not melting them yet. He's infecting them and creating sleeper agents.'
I gagged, cutting the connection.
[ System Alert: The Flayed Army is growing. ][ Current Status: 5% Complete. ]
"He's building an army," I whispered to the darkness. "First the rats. Then the people. Then... the body."
I gripped my wand.
'I can't fight that thing when it's finished. I have to stop the source.'
'I have to close the Gate.'
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