Play// Stranger Things

017

Valerie Archer was no stranger to fear. Every road she crossed, every corner she turned; there was the feeling that something was lurking, watching, waiting for the perfect time to pounce.

Her dreams had never been happy ones. For as long as she could remember they had been plagued by strange worlds filled with inhuman creatures and shadowy landscapes of dread.

Fear was second nature for Valerie Archer, who had been told stories of bad men in white coats who weren't afraid to rid of her just like they did to her father.

Yet, standing face to face with something truly terrifying Valerie felt nothing but relief. The thing in front of her didn't have any eyes for her to peer into and yet she felt it staring back at her.

At that moment Valerie felt relief because her biggest fear had been proven untrue. Micheal Archer, a kid with a deadbeat dad and a mother who had fled years prior, was not the Demogorgon.

Michael Archer, who had gotten a once-in-a-lifetime internship at Hawkins lab for the price of being subjected to experimentation of foreign substances from an alien dimension across the void, opened by one Rachel Brenner, was long dead.

While the Demogorgon resembled that of a man, it was no human in any sense. Valerie Archer was sure of this above all. Micheal Archer, who was sent into the upside-down 16 years ago was but a memory.

Valerie watched the being in front of her let out a low crackle from its spot across the yard, but for a moment the girl felt as if there was no space separating the two.

That was until its face blossomed and it let out a treacherous bellow, snapping the young girl back to reality. Valerie let her eyes fly shut and a sensation similar to falling through time in space washed over her until she jolted back to the present with a cold and sharp inhale of oxygen.

"Guys," Charlie called out as he ran to Valerie as the girl shot to her feet, coughing as she fought to catch her breath. "It's here." She barely managed to get out before she took in her surroundings. "You have five seconds to get out of here," Nancy snapped at Steve, revolver in hand as she pointed the weapon at the boy.

"Whoa, whoa. Okay, is this a joke? Stop. P-put the gun down." Steve croaked as his eyes darted around the room. "I'm doing this for you," she said genuinely, missing the flurry of bright lights behind her. "Nancy." Jonathan's eyes grew wide. "Wait," Steve panicked. "Is this a- what is this?"

"Nancy-" Charlie tried as he grabbed a golf club and gripped it tightly. "Three," Nancy threatened. "No, no, no! No!" Steve cried out. "Two,"

"Nancy! The lights." Jonathan shouted over the madness, finally capturing Nancy's attention as she sharply turned to watch as the Christmas lights jittered throughout the house. "It's here," Jonathan whispered.

"Wait, what's here?" barked Steve, shaking from the whole ordeal as he scanned the rainbow of colors going off throughout the house.

Valerie handed Johnathan the spiked bat from the table, causing Steve to scream as he watched the group of four stand back to back in the center of the room. "Easy with that!" Steve cried out. "Where is it?" Nancy questioned, ignoring Steve as they turned in a short circle under the rave of lights.

"I don't know. I don't see it." Charlie panicked. "Where is what? Hello! Will someone please explain to me what the hell is going –" A thundering noise sounded from the back of the house, the ceiling above the tarped-up wall beginning to cave in under moving pressure.