History Must Repeat Itself

Chapter 38

          "Brenner would be disappointed to know one of his little experiments got away."

I spun, the voice booming around me. I was back in the Upside Down, but at the Creel house this time.

"I wonder what he would've done," I turned again, searching for where the male voice came from, "if he knew there was a child who could identify his children without their powers being revealed."

Turning one more time, I realized my leg was fine. My skin was clean and I didn't feel gross. I couldn't appreciate it as a disgusting humanoid figure appeared in front of me. His skin was oily and the vines that covered the Upside Down constructed his body too. His pupil-less eyes stared at me.

I opened my mouth, but I wasn't able to speak. The humanoid stepped towards me. It was Vecna. I didn't need to be introduced. My body may be healed but my brain felt drunk and high. The buzzing was overwhelming and uncomfortable. Vecna stopped two feet from me.

"What would you feel if you were kept here with me?" He asked, tilting his head. He may have no pupils but I felt the intense glare of curiosity. His hand raised and lowered towards my forehead. My heart began pounding in my chest, terrified of how it would feel. I shut my eyes as the grotesque fingertip made contact.

I gasped, sitting up. My head shot around, fear pulsing through my body. Hands rested on me, and I jerked away, my brain screaming dangerous.

"Whoa, Jess! It's me. It's Eddie!"

My vision focused. I was in Max's trailer, not Eddie's. Her normal trailer. I didn't know how I got here, but I was glad to be far away from the gate. Eddie sat in front of me, barely on the couch. Max and Robin knelt beside me. Dustin, Erica, Steve, and Nancy were around the room. Everyone was watching me. My heart still pounded in my chest, but not in the overwhelming way as before. My eyes rested on Nancy. She looked shaken by whatever Vecna had put her through.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She nodded. "I haven't told the others what I saw yet."

I nodded. Eddie moved and I sat properly, my feet on the floor. I felt an odd sense against my thigh. Looking down, my pants were shredded and a new bandage was wrapped around me.

"I'm glad you passed out actually," Eddie said, "we had to cauterize it. I don't know if you'd want to be awake for that."

"Thank you," I quietly said. Leaning forwards, ignoring the dull wince that shot through me, I looked at Nancy. I fought to focus on what she was saying, Vecna's face still in my mind.

She cleared her throat. "He showed me things that haven't happened yet. The most awful things. I saw a dark cloud spreading over Hawkins. Downtown on fire. Dead soldiers. And this giant creature with a gaping mouth. And this creature wasn't alone. There were so many monsters. An army. And they were coming into Hawkins. Into our neighbourhoods. Our homes. And then." She paused. "He showed me my mum. And Holly. Mike. And they... They were all..." Nancy began tearing up and we filled in our own blanks.

Looking at the ground, my eyes ran back and forth along the carpet. I knew what Nancy had seen. I'd seen it in nightmares recently. I hadn't told anyone. I thought it was just nightmares. There was too much else going on to be worried about my imagination. My nose wasn't bleeding and until minutes before, I'd never interacted with Vecna. I wasn't a target.

I bit down on my lip, looking up.

"Okay, but he's just trying to scare you, Nance. Right? I mean." Steve sighed. "I mean, it's not real."

"Not yet," Nancy said. I knew what she was going to say next. "But there... There was something else. He showed me gates. Four gates. Spreading across Hawkins."