veda henderson

          My vision becomes dark, the pain in my bicep starts to dull despite the creature not slowing down. After everything, I didn't expect this to be how it ended. I've fought through so much even outside of the paranormal world and I'm so close to uncovering the truth I can almost feel it. 

    A thought plagues me as my throat aches. If I die here, who is going to help Max? 

    Even worse, how will Dustin cope? He seems like a strong kid when it comes to this world but he's not. The upside down is something interesting and explainable, my death would be something he can't find reason or meaning to. I don't want him to fall into the same pit I'm stuck in. 

    And Eddie. Poor Eddie. I'm the only person who witnessed Chrissy's death who can vouch for him. Besides that, I haven't had the chance to actually talk to him about everything. How I feel, and how he possibly feels the same. I want to have the conversation, no matter how mundane and silly it may seem in comparison to what's going on. I need mundane, something so boring and normal it distracts me from the craziness of the world around us.

    Feeling a surge of anger fuelled by adrenaline, I reach for the oar lying discarded near me. I groan, screaming as my bicep flexes in a way that sends pain surging through me. My fingertips graze the wood enough for me to pull it towards me, my hand enclosing around the object before I swing upwards, hitting the creature holding me by my neck. I cough, rubbing at my bruised throat as I hit the bat away from my skin. The bat hits the ground, giving me time to grab the oar and drive it onto the creature, hitting its head. 

    The bat falls limp, my foot moving until I'm stomping on it over and over again, yelling out. I stomp one last time, its flesh squelching as I scream in pain, almost doubling over. 

    I look up, my vision slowly clearing as I see a figure enter my sights. I lift the oar up over my head, preparing to swing before Eddie's concerned face becomes clear. His hands fold out in front of him, approaching me slowly as his eyes dart to the blood from my bicep. 

    The oar is still positioned high above my head as I inspect the situation. Nancy and Robin are over at Steve, fighting the bats off of him in a rage. I slowly look back to Eddie, a part of me still not believing he's actually here and rather a hallucination due to lack of oxygen. 

    "Veda?" Eddie's voice meets my ears, the softness melting my shaking body. I fall forward, wrapping my good arm around his neck and resting my head on his shoulder. I feel the tenseness of his body as if he's scared and doesn't know what to do. But then, he tightly wraps his arms around my waist and holds me close to him. 

    "Those fucking things are tough to beat," I huff into his shoulder, his head moving until his lips were pressed into my hair, just sitting there as if he's inhaling my scent to reassure himself of my presence. 

    "No match for you. I meant it when I said you're metal as hell," He comments, pulling me back from his embrace to look over my face. I turn from him and back to Steve just as another bat flies in from the distance, latching onto Nancy's back.

    "Nance!" I scream, clutching the oar in my hands as I run towards them, Eddie hot on my tail. 

    We reach the group in no time, more bats fly in from the distance. I turn and toss the oar to Eddie who catches it and immediately swings at a bat mid-air. I turn to Nancy, running up to her and grabbing the bat by the tail, pulling until it lets go of her. Nancy regains her composure as I swing the bat onto the concrete, my hands holding onto its grimy tale as blood spills from its body. Robin jogs over, lifting her boot and stomping on the animal until it lets out a screech of agony followed by silence. 

    At the same time, Steve frees himself from the grasp of the bat, copying my moves and swinging the animal by its tail down into the concrete. Eddie stands to his right, taunting the creature until it flies into the now broken end of the oar. It impales itself on the wood, allowing Eddie to push it to the concrete and finish the job. 

    Steve delivers the final blow to the bat that had held him prisoner, the same dying screech escaping from it before Steve presses his foot to it, pulling until the bat is ripped in half. 

    All of us huff, trying to force the air back into our chests after the adrenaline-filled circumstances. 

    "Jesus Christ. Jesus H Christ," Eddie babbles, slowly turning in his spot to observe the carnage. He throws the oar to the ground in anger, turning to the sky as it turns red once more. 

    "You okay, Steve?" I ask through shallow breaths, crouching until I'm sitting flat on the ground, my chest rising up and down. 

    He nods, looking down at his mangled abdomen. "Took about a pound of flesh. You?"

    I turn to my arm, spotting the marks all along my bicep and forearms, the biggest damage to my bicep. "Probably the same,"

    Nancy moves over to Steve, stressing over him as she inspects him for other more serious injuries. I turn away from them as Eddie approaches me, crushing down beside me to also stare at my bicep. 

    "Uh, do you guys think that these bats have, like, rabies?" Robin croaks, pointing her flashlight down at one of the dead bats. 

    "I hope not," I respond alarmed, looking all over my arm.

    "It's just that rabies are, like, my number one greatest fear and I think we should get you both to a doctor like really soon because once the symptoms set in, it's too late. You're already, like, dead," Robin rambles, overusing the word 'like' in her flustered state. 

    "Let me know if you find a doctor that specialises in otherworldly creatures and their diseases," I grumble, pushing myself to stand alongside Eddie. 

     From the distance, that same haunting screech echoes throughout the area. Everyone turns to the skies, six more of them flying towards us. Eddie grabs my wrist and tugs me behind him, Robin grabbing onto me until she too is standing behind the group, looking over Steve's shoulders at the bats flying in.

    Thankfully, all six of them land a few feet in front of us, inspecting a patch of glowing red similar to the gate we just entered through. 

    "Alright, there's not that many," Steve whispered, pushing himself in front of the group out of protectiveness. "We can take them,"

    Another screech sounds causing us all to look up. Far away, a whole swarm of bats fly towards us, looking as if they're on a mission and we're their targets. 

    "You were saying?" Robin swallows hard. 

    "The woods. Come on!' Nancy calls out, all of us turning and running after her as she heads for trees in the distance. 

    "Great," Robin says from beside me. I turn my head to her as she flips the torch and catches it, my eyebrows lifting up in delightful surprise. She turns to me, an exhausted expression on her face. "More running,"

    I smile at her, running off after the group next to her. The light of the torch sways in her hand as she runs, creating a mismatched light path. The occasional boom of red lightning followed by thunder is enough to light our way as we enter the forest, avoiding all the thick dead vines on the way.

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no pov

          "What exactly were you doing at the lake?" Hawkins Chief Powell questions the three kids on the couch. Dustin Henderson sits in between Lucas and Max, a pillow clutched in his arms against his chest.

    All three kids look at each other, no sound escaping their mouths as they mentally try to scramble for a good enough excuse.

    "We were just going for a walk," Max finally speaks in confidence, looking towards the cops and the parents with a fake look of innocence.

    "A walk?" Officer Callahan asks dumbfounded, looking at the kids with a sceptical look. "At 9:00 pm?"

    "To the lake," Dustin says in a squeak, thinking about how his older sister would surely laugh at and mock his sudden voice crack. "We were gonna... take a little swim. Little night swim,"

    "Dusty," Claudia Henderson breathes out, looking at her youngest child in disbelief. Despite trying to make herself look presentable for the others in the room, no one misses the redness of her eyes and nose as well as the tear stains on her cheeks. She hasn't stopped crying since her eldest child went missing, presumed to be kidnapped. Ever since, she's been working closely with the police, trying to find her daughter and the monster that kidnapped her. "Someone was just murdered there. And your sister, she's still... we don't know where she is!"

    "Yeah, I know mum. We... we didn't realise that until we got there," Dustin defends, wishing he could just tell his Mum that Veda is safe and that he's spoken to her. But, he can't, especially not now in a room full of cops. 

    "That's why we didn't swim," Lucas jumps in.

    "And Nancy, was she with you at this night swim?" Mrs Wheeler asks in concern, her eyes wide in fear. All the parents in the room have been filled with fear since the moment the killing started and their kids started disappearing. None of them want to end up like the murdered teen's parents or like Claudia Henderson, unaware of where her daughter is or if she is still alive. 

    "No,"

    "Yes, uh," Dustin stutters, realising he and Max just made contradicting statements. "We're not sure,"

    "How are you not sure?" Mrs Wheeler questions further. 

    "She was there and then... she left," Max answered.

    "Sorry, it's just been hard to... think straight when my sister could be... I don't even want to say it," Dustin looks up, dramatically pretending to wipe the crocodile tears from his face. Claudia's face softens at her child, her heart aching for the pain he's displaying over his sister. 

    "And that's when you guys came!" Lucas pushes on.

    "Right. Then they dared me to say what I said, about the killer," Max dryly laughs it off. Both boys on the couch look at each other, hiding their annoyance with wide eyes and fake laughs.

    "You're lucky you didn't get shot," Ted Wheeler bitterly cuts through the children's laughter.

    "Have you had any contact with Eddie?" Chief Powell questions, steering the conversation back to the murders. 

    "That psycho... freak killer? God, no. If I did have contact with him I'd... give him a piece of my mind for taking my sister!" Dustin fails to sound sincere, finding words that would please the adults in the room. 

    "Oh, that's a bunch of bull!" Erica Sinclair steps forward, her arms crossed over her chest. 

    "Erica!" The Sinclair parents call out their youngest child's name in disbelief. 

    "I mean, you realise they're lying! The whole couch is on fire!" Erica declares, turning to glare at the three young teens on the couch "Just the facts,"

    "Are you lying to these policemen, Dusty? Any information could help them find Veda," Claudia's voice shakes

    "No!" Dustin disagrees with a squeal.

    "Lying to the cops is a crime, son." Mr Sinclair tells his son. Lucas defends himself, insisting he isn't lying.

    "Your sister could be in serious danger, Dustin," Chief Powell quieted the commotion in the room, maintaining eye contact with the youngest Henderson. "You don't want her to end up like those other kids. Now, I understand if you're scared but-"

    "No! We're not scared. If I knew anything that could help, the police would be the first people I'd call!" Dustin insists, keeping his high-pitched tone.

    "We're gonna try a more civilised approach," Powell states, standing up from his chair before aiming a finger at the redhead in front of him. "You first,"

    "What? Why me? I'm not even in the hellfire-"

    "Do I need to cuff you?" Callahan points at Max, trying to be intimidating. "Chop-Chop. Let's go,"

    Max huffs, getting up from her seat and walking after Chief Powell. 

    All three teens unknowingly share the same thought, nothing but the hidden worry in their eyes, wondering where the five young adults are and if they're okay.