There's No Place Like Hawkins//Stranger Things. SH

FIFTY FIVE

The Flayed

The party, plus Nancy and Jonathan, rolled up to the Holloway household. The same house that Max and El visited when they checked up on Billy the day prior. Nancy rang the doorbell a couple of times before they all realised that no one was going to answer. The eldest two looked to Eleven who used her powers to unlock the door and swing it open. Tentatively, Nancy and the others stepped inside, worried about what they were going to find. "Tom?" Nancy called out, unsure of her ex-boss' whereabouts. "Heather?"

"Jesus, it's freezing." Max commented to El as they all followed Nancy through the seemingly deserted house.

"Do you guys smell that?" Nancy asked as they entered the living room. "Oh, God." They entered the kitchen to see it that it was in a complete state. The fridge lying on the floor and every single cleaning product was open- and empty. "More chemicals." Nancy observed, walking further into the room.

They crowded around the fridge, unable to take their eyes off the chemicals. "You think they're guzzling this shit?" Jonathan asked the eldest Wheeler.

"Yeah, either that or they just went on a hell of a cleaning spree." Nancy joked.

"But last year, Will didn't eat chemicals." Max pointed out. "Did you?"

"No. This is something new."

"Mr. Clarke, fifth grade. Posit." Mike said. "What happens when you mix chemicals together?"

"You create a new substance." Both Will and Lucas answered.

"What if they're making something?" Mike suggested.

"In themselves?" Max questioned. "I mean, come on, if you drink this crap, it'll kill you."

"Yeah, if you're human." Lucas pointed out.

***

The further down the tunnel the Scoops Troop walked, the higher the risk of them being spotted increased. After nearly being found, the five of them hid behind a large metal crate. Steve put Catherine back on the floor in order for them all to fit in the tiny space between the grate and the wall. It took everything Cat had not to cry out from the pain. Once the coast was clear, Steve waved them out- his arm wrapped around Cat's waist as he helped her walk (well, hop). "Okay, that was close." Robin breathed.

"Did I mention that I hate small spaces?" Cat whispered sharply. "Because they're fucking horrible."

"Relax." Steve told them as they continued to walk through the tunnel, Catherine leaning nearly all her weight on him. "All right? Relax. Nobody saw..." He trailed off as they rounded a corner and their eyes fell on hundreds (maybe an exaggeration, but there were lots) of military Russians. They'd finally reached the main source of the operation.

"Shit." Cat hissed as Steve pulled her behind a row of boxes, their friends right behind them. She hissed as she crouched down, her weight now on her busted leg.